


A Hundred Bad Days Made a Hundred Good Stories {A Hundred Good Stories Made Me Interesting at Parties}

by spaceprincessem



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alive Hale pack, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Happy Ending, Insecure Stiles, M/M, Monster of the Week, Pack Feels, Protective Derek, Protective Stiles, stiles and allison friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:27:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 27,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25566655
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spaceprincessem/pseuds/spaceprincessem
Summary: Stiles has had bad days before.Worse days. Much worse days. And yet, it did not detract from the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day he was currently having
Relationships: Derek Hale & Stiles Stilinski, Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski
Comments: 31
Kudos: 603
Collections: Sterek love





	A Hundred Bad Days Made a Hundred Good Stories {A Hundred Good Stories Made Me Interesting at Parties}

**Author's Note:**

> Just a heads up there's a a few brief moments of implied homophobia and some very mild non-consensual touching, but nothing below the waist and it happens very quickly. Just figured I would mention them!

Stiles has had bad days before. _Worse days_. Much worse days. And yet, it did not detract from the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day he was currently having. 

It all started, as these days usually did, with a very small amount of sleep, if he could even call it sleep at all. Beacon Hills was a town of all things wicked and scary, barely giving the local heroes – yes, that is what Stiles referred to them as, because, really they were – a break in between the newest monster of the week. Last night he had driven himself crazy pouring over books and diving into the deep and dark places of the internet where he had learned _several_ things he’d rather forget. He had also figured out their vampire problem wasn’t really a vampire problem, but that was a conversation for later when they gathered for their pack meeting. By the time he had found the information he had been looking for it was well past two in the morning. He had collapsed on his bed, body exhausted, but his mind was still running a marathon. A side effect of his Nogitsune possession – see _worse days_ – just over nine months ago.

If his mind kept busy then it wouldn’t wander to places he didn’t want it to go. He had been getting better, the nightmares mostly gone, except for the occasional one here and there, but keeping his mind occupied made it harder to fall asleep. He had finally passed out around four, his alarm going off a mere three hours later. In his weakened state he slammed his hand on his alarm _eleven times_ before he realized he was going to be late for school. He had jumped up from the bed, taking the quickest shower of his life, which, of course, him being Stiles, made him slip in the bathroom in his haste, hitting his knee against the tub. Then when he pulled his favorite hoodie out of the dryer it was still damp, making him shiver against the chilly morning. His father had used the last of the coffee, leaving him none. They were out of jelly so he had to suffer with just a plain peanut butter sandwich with the butt – _the butt!_ – of the bread. 

He probably would have cried and given up on the day if his Jeep had refused to start, but luckily it roared to life right before the heater kicked the bucket, making him groan. He leaned his head against the steering wheel, wondering what he had done to deserve this. He drove as quickly as he could, making damn well sure he didn’t get pulled over because the last thing he needed was his dad yelling at him about getting a speeding ticket. He had made it to school just in time to not be late for class, but not late enough to avoid getting shoved against the locker by that asshole from the basketball team. Stiles sighed as he scooped up his books from the floor, his shoulder aching from the impact. He had contemplated telling the pack about this problem, but didn’t want to burden them with any more of his issues. Nine months of post possession was enough to deal with for a lifetime. He didn’t even know why this guy sought out Stiles just to shove him in the hallway when his friends conveniently weren’t there. He highly suspected it had something to do with his recent expression of his bisexuality, but he tried not to dwell on it. His friends, and more importantly his father, accepted and supported him and that was good enough for Stiles. 

By the time he had made it to his class the teacher was barking at him to sit down. His usual seat by Lydia was currently taken so he was forced to sit in the corner desk that was slightly uneven no matter how much paper was stuffed under the back leg. It was a Beacon Hills mystery Stiles made note to bring up at the next pack meeting, because it was very important that it was solved. At least the pain in his shoulder negated the pain in his knee.

“You look like death warmed up.”

Stiles didn’t pull his gaze away from his locker as he stuffed his books inside, scowling. The books apparently hadn’t appreciated that and came tumbling out, landing on his right foot causing him to release a small yelp of pain. Well, at least his shoulder pain wasn’t as noticeable now.

“Gee, thanks Scotty,” Stiles said as he bent down to pick up the mess, Scott moving to help him, “you really know how to cheer me up.”

Scott had the decency to look embarrassed as he handed Stiles the last book from the ground. “Sorry, are you okay?”

Stiles scrubbed his face, his exhaustion overwhelming without his usual caffeine boost. “Just having one of those days.”

Scott placed a comforting hand on his – thankfully good – shoulder. “Anything I can do?”

“Not unless you can materialize the biggest cup of coffee in the world with your super awesome werewolf powers.” Stiles deadpanned as he closed his locker, falling in step with his best friend.

Scott snorted and Stiles felt his lips twitch up in the corners.

“Up late researching?” Scott asked as they took their usual seats.

Stiles nodded. “On the plus side it’s not vampires.” He said somewhat brightly. “Well, it’s kind of vampires, but not your typical blood sucking vampires we’ve all come to know and love.”

Scott peaked a confused eyebrow. “So, what?” He finally asked as if he was still trying to make sense of what Stiles had said. 

Stiles opened his mouth to explain, but the bell rang and their principal had come strolling in accompanied by a woman who was probably supposed to be their new English teacher. Right. Beacon Hills was currently having a problem of teachers either being sacrificed or doing the sacrificing. This woman appeared to be in her mid thirties, tall, with long blonde hair, and devastatingly beautiful. He could see a few of the guys sitting up straighter as she walked across the room smiling brightly. Stiles met her bright blue eyes for a moment and _immediately_ didn’t like her. 

There were a lot of unknowns in Stiles’ life, but when it came to his gut, his intuition, that was one thing he was very sure of. And right now his gut was telling him something was not right with Ms. Jacqueline Adder. Maybe it was the too perfect smiling she was now giving the class as the principal introduced her or the way her voice carried across the room without having to be raised at all. Whatever it was, Stiles had felt a chill go down his spine when their eyes met. He quickly turned to look at Scott because if his human senses were triggered then the werewolf ones had to have been affected too.

“What?” Scott whispered when he caught Stiles starring. 

Stiles narrowed his eyes, but Scott looked perfectly relaxed in his seat, like he hadn’t sensed the same terrible feeling Stiles had just picked up on. He shook his head; of course Scott wouldn’t pick up on it right away. Stiles loved Scott, he really did, but sometimes the alpha was a little late to the party. So, he turned his attention to Isaac. Maybe Isaac had sniffed out what an evil creature Ms. Adder was pretending to be. Isaac looked just as calm as Scott, although he threw Stiles a confused glance. 

Stiles huffed in annoyance. Erica. Erica would notice something was off, right? He swiveled in his seat to catch a glimpse of the blonde bombshell sitting behind him. She only offered Stiles an inquisitive smile before her eyes snapped towards the front.

“Mr. Stilinski, isn’t it?”

Stiles wanted to groan, but he forced the sound down his throat as he turned to face the apparently not evil creature that was his new English teacher. She was standing just in front of his desk, that stupid smile still on her face.

Stiles swallowed the lump in his throat before he answered. “That’s me.”

“Your reputation precedes you.” She said and Stiles realized everyone was now looking at him. “I was warned you were a bit of a trouble maker.”

Stiles laughed nervously, just shrugging his shoulders like he had no idea what she was talking about. “I just like to keep things interesting.” He mumbled, sinking into his seat, wishing his Jeep had broken down so he could have stayed at home this morning.

“Keep your eyes up front, Mr. Stilinski and we won’t have a problem.” Ms. Adder hummed before she returned to the front of the class to begin her lesson. 

Stiles pulled his still damp hood over his head, promptly ignoring the looks he was still getting from some of his fellow classmates. Yeah, this day really sucked and it was only second period.

-

If Stiles had hoped his day would improve after his disastrous morning then he was seriously mistaken. He had to stay a few minutes after his class before lunch to fight for points on his homework that were unfairly taken away. This made him late to his locker, which meant his friends were already at lunch, which also meant asshole basketball player got to take another shot at him as he hurried off to the cafeteria. Now both of his shoulders ached and by the time he had made it to lunch they were out of chocolate milk. 

He moodily sat down between Allison and Lydia, trying to ignore his throbbing shoulders. He knew he could have done something in return to stop asshole basketball guy from shoving and pushing whenever they passed each other, but Stiles didn’t want to make the situation worse. The basketball team had a lot of big dudes and Stiles was _not_ getting his friends involved. He could defend himself, he could! He just didn’t have the energy to fight that battle right now. 

“Bets on how long Ms. Adder will be around before the supernatural grip of Beacon Hills consumes her?” Erica asked with a grin as she looked around at the table.

This immediately sparked a debate as everyone gave their opinion on the new English teacher. 

“I don’t like her.” Stiles blurted out as Boyd noted her attractiveness and Kira complimented her lesson. All eyes turned to look at him. Stiles just shrugged as he pushed his tator tots around his plate. “She just gives me a weird vibes, that’s all.”

“Yeah,” Isaac said with a teasing grin, “because she called you out in front of the entire class.”

The group chuckled, but Stiles just shook his head.

“None of you got a bad feeling when she entered the room?” He asked, looking hopefully at all of the wolves. 

They all just shook their heads.

“You’re too paranoid, Stilinski.” Jackson said, pointing his fork in Stiles’ direction.

Stiles wanted to argue that because of his constant state of questioning he had solved most of the mysteries and supernatural occurrences in Beacon Hills. Without him most of the pack would probably be dead or at least missing several limbs. But, he didn’t push his argument, knowing luck was not on his side today. He kept his head down the rest of the day, hoping that things wouldn’t get any worse. Thankfully, the rest of the school day passed without any serious incidents. He was shoved particularly hard by asshole basketball player when he was the last to leave the locker room after lacrosse practice, resulting in his wrist feeling like it might have been a tiny bit sprained though. He hurried home, cursing his Jeep for the heater still being broken. He pulled out his homework to get it done before the pack meeting at Derek’s loft to take on their not vampire problem.

The pizza he ordered went to the wrong house and by the time it got to him it was slightly cold and he only had time to shove one piece in his mouth on his way out the door. His stomach grumbled uncomfortably as he realized he hadn’t had much in the way of lunch, but he figured his adrenaline and nerves would wipe out an appetite he currently had. Of course he was the last one to arrive, which meant he was met with annoyed glares instead of wonderful hellos. He seriously considered getting new friends.

They plowed through the meeting, Stiles contributing what he had found out, only earning him a _few_ eye rolls from Jackson, which he was used to, so no loss there. 

“Is there anything else that needs to be talked about before we head out to the preserve?” Derek asked, his voice reflecting that he would rather _not_ have anyone saying anything at all – for the next forever if he could help it – but, hey, at least he was trying.

Stiles cleared his throat and ignored the pointed looks he was now receiving. Stiles wasn’t one to beat around the bush or let narrowed eyes from his friends stop him before, so he pushed forward like he always did. “I think our new English teacher is bad news.” He was nothing, if not blunt.

His words were immediately met with groans from all of his friends, save for Derek who probably had no idea what he was talking about. His cocked eyebrow clearly stated that he was listening, but not sure if he should be taking the accusation seriously. Because, apparently, Stiles was well versed in Derek Hale Eyebrow Talk.

“Stiles,” Scott whined, “she’s not evil! Don’t you think we would have sensed it if she was?”

“Yeah,” Erica scoffed, arms crossing over her chest, “I think we’re a little better at sniffing that stuff out than you are.”

Stiles wasn’t sure if it was his pent up frustration from the terrible day he was having or something deeper that made him snap. “ _Funny_ ,” he said, sarcasm barely hiding his anger, “considering I was the one who had said it was Matt controlling Jackson during the whole Kanima thing.”

The pack looked a little taken aback at his outburst.

“Or how I told you all something was off about Jennifer Blake.” He continued, his cheeks flushing. “Maybe I should remind you of the time I knew about the pixies messing with Lydia, the vampires out to get Boyd and Isaac, the siren controlling Derek, or-“

“Stiles,” Scott said, placing his hands on the human’s shoulders to steady him, “okay, we’re sorry.”

Stiles flinched under Scott’s grasp, his shoulder still hurting from where he was bullied hours ago. He felt his anger draining away as he looked at the guilty faces of his friends, but he was growing rather frustrated that they continued to question his judgment when he was usually right.

“Just, forget it.” Stiles mumbled as he pushed Scott’s hands off. He avoided looking at anyone else, but somehow his gaze had wondered up to Derek. The alpha was his typical blank slate, but if Stiles looked hard enough, which he did, he could see concern in the softened corners of those green eyes. “English teacher isn’t evil, I get it.” He said, trying to give the pack a reassuring smile, even though his heartbeat probably betrayed him. “Let’s just go take care of these not vampires.”

No one argued and Stiles figured they were just happy they had an out from this uncomfortable conversation. He just wanted to get this night over with and crawl into bed and forget this day had ever happened.

-

Stiles knew he shouldn’t have been surprised when only three and a half people listened to his carefully laid plan to take out the not vampires. Those three people had been Lydia, because she was obviously the smartest person in the group besides himself – and maybe Derek – and knew not to question his plan making abilities. Boyd was the second because he was Boyd. Derek had, surprisingly, been the third for whatever reason and Scott, god bless him, was the half person because he at least tried to remember what Stiles had said. The rest of the pack had kind of – understatement of the week – disregarded the plan all together in favor for what they had thought would work best.

This, of course, resulted in Jackson almost dying if Stiles hadn’t been around to save him. This _also_ resulted in Stiles receiving a mild concussion. Which meant that Jackson and his ungrateful ass was now yelling at Stiles for interfering saying that he would have been _fine_ even though Stiles knew he really wouldn’t have been. This turned into Derek yelling at him for getting a concussion, like Stiles had _really_ planned on getting one when he had saved – _saved!_ – Jackson. It ended with his father yelling at him for being so reckless when he had gotten home.

Now he had a sore knee, two aching shoulders, a painful wrist, and a pounding headache to add to the misery that was currently his life. He fell into his bed, forcing the tears out of his eyes. What was the point of making a plan if no one ever followed it? What was the point of sticking his neck out for his friends if it just resulted in everyone yelling at him because of his stupid human fragility? No one ever said thank you, not that he was doing it for the thanks, but _god_ would it kill them to just appreciate that Stiles was willing to die for them? Or, at least risk serious injury. He’d probably only actually die for Scott and Lydia, and maybe Derek, but he couldn’t handle thinking about _that_ right now. He really didn’t have time to add unrequited heartache to his list of woes.

-

His mild concussion made it difficult to sleep despite how much he craved to be unconscious. He was beginning to wonder if he was a little more than mildly concussed when he had stumbled into the bathroom to puke at three in the morning, but he had already told his dad, numerous times, that he was fine. So, when his alarm went off at seven am he only snoozed it seven times before getting out of bed. He, stupidly, hoped that today would be better, that his bad day was just that, one dumb bad day that was now very much behind him.

Stiles wished he could be so lucky. 

His dad had, thankfully, bought more coffee, but Stiles burned the pot as he answered a panicked call from Scott about their chemistry test that Stiles had to talk him down from. He tried not to be mad as he mournfully poured the coffee into the sink because Scott was his best friend and he wouldn’t call unless he was really worried about it. He felt too queasy to stuff anything beside dry toast – the other butt of the bread – into his mouth before he peeled off to school, the heat in his Jeep still not working.

Scott was waiting for him, which blissfully meant that asshole basketball player would have to take his cheap shot later. He must have looked worse than he did yesterday as Scott gave him a very concerned once over.

“Stiles…” Scott started as Stiles just ducked his head so as to not look at his best friend.

“I’m fine.” He said on reflex, knowing that Scott could easily identify the lie. Stiles sighed as he spotted Scott’s eyebrows narrowing. “You’re telling me you didn’t hear Derek yelling at me about my mild concussion after saving Jackson last night?”

Scott just shook his head as they walked into the building together, his fingers brushing against the back of Stiles’ neck. Stiles hummed in contentment as the pain in his head began to ease a little. Derek had offered to do it last night, but Stiles had been so upset he just wanted to go home. He had regretted the decision as soon as he had piled into the Jeep. At least Scott was taking pity on him now. Things were already starting to look up. 

His positive outlook quickly changed as he realized he’d studied the wrong chapter for their chemistry test. He had been so distracted by the not vampire thing that he had read the syllabus wrong. He thanked whatever higher power was listening that he at least knew enough to pull off a B minus. His day continued to plunge downhill as he filed into his English class. He had told himself he was going to give Ms. Adder a second chance, because maybe he was wrong. She seemed to pass all of the super werewolf senses, so maybe, just maybe….

Nope. 

Stiles still hated her weird smile, noticing her eyes looked a little more like a cold, harsh ice storm when she looked in his direction. He could somehow feel how much she hated him with every glance tossed his way throughout the lesson. This seemed to only grow worse as she put him on the spot, asking him something about the reading that he definitely did _ <i> _ _not_ _ </i> _ do because he had been mildly concussed the night before. Really, it wasn’t his fault he didn’t have the ability to focus on a book when the words blended together, making him feel sick.

“Mr. Stilinski, maybe we should try a bit harder next time.” She reprimanded lightly, but Stiles could see the corners of her mouth tighten.

He wanted to bring it up to the pack that she was out to get him, but Isaac and Erica were already teasing him about it during lunch. Jackson was pointedly not speaking to him, even though Stiles had saved his life, and everyone else was more interested in talking about anything that wasn’t supernatural related. Stiles couldn’t blame them. He too wanted to forget that their lives were not normal and they could talk about things like prom and the most recent Marvel movie they’d all just watch. Besides, his head was starting to hurt again and he was already thinking of what excuse he could make up to go home early and just sleep.

-

He ended up suffering through the rest of the day because Lydia had invited him out for coffee after school to study. He had nearly made it the whole day without running into the asshole basketball player – Trevor was his name? – but, he was unceremoniously shoved into the staircase, nearly breaking his ankle. Trevor only offered a smirk, as he not so carefully stepped over the spilled contents of Stiles’ bag. He knew if he told the pack about it they would have done something to Trevor, but it wasn’t their fight. Stiles would figure it out like he figured everything else out.

He hurried off to meet Lydia for coffee, feeling much better when they had abandoned their books to gossip instead. He was actually beginning to enjoy his day when he spotted Derek walk into the coffee shop, his heart fluttering a little in his chest. He was thankful Lydia, although a very powerful banshee, could not hear his traitorous heartbeat like the other wolves could. He didn’t want to explain how he was harboring the biggest crush in the world on the alpha. It was embarrassing to say the least and annoying to know that Scott had already figured something out. Stiles understood that Derek would never feel the same way so it was just easier to pretend like those feelings didn’t exist. That way he and Derek could still be friends. Their packs had finally gotten closer over the past year and Stiles didn’t want to ruin that.

Still, he couldn’t stop himself from staring.

“Is that Derek?” Lydia asked as she followed Stiles’ line of sight.

“Should we ask if he wants to join us?” Stiles asked a little too casually.

Lydia gave him a knowing look and Stiles felt his cheeks flush. He should have known Lydia didn’t need werewolf senses to pick up on his stupid feelings.

“It looks like he’s busy, actually.” Lydia said with what could only be the smallest amount of pity in her voice.

Stiles felt his jaw drop as he watched Derek order two coffees and hand one over to…

“ _Jacqueline fucking Adder_?” Stiles stammered out as he watched his English teacher laugh at something Derek had said, blonde hair falling over her shoulder. “Didn’t Derek learn not to trust English teachers after Jennifer Blake?” Stiles asked moodily.

“Interesting.” Lydia said as she watched the pair, looking between them and Stiles with a curious glint in her eye.

Whatever good mood Stiles had managed to build in the few hours he had spent with Lydia had disappeared immediately. Derek was out with the new teacher that most definitely hated Stiles, even though he hadn’t really done anything to provoke her. He felt a dull ache in his chest as he watched Derek move in a way that looked so carefree and open. 

It hurt. A lot. 

Lydia seemed to take the hint and wrapped up their meeting, wishing Stiles a good evening as they parted ways. Stiles tried to ignore the weight in his chest as he drove home, the image of Derek laughing, _laughing_ , with that woman permanently branded in his mind. His dad was working the late shift again and he didn’t have the heart to cook anything. He just grabbed a slice of leftover pizza and slowly made his way to his bedroom, wishing the floor would just open up and swallow him whole. 

He knew he had no right to be jealous. He was probably never going to act on his feelings and Derek would find someone eventually. It was too much to ask for the alpha to be lonely forever just because Stiles was too afraid to admit how hard he had fallen. He didn’t even know how it happened. It was just a few short years ago that they both h _ated_ each other. It was like one of those stupid romantic comedies where the main characters went from enemies, to friends, to lovers. Except Stiles’ life included a lot less romance and a lot more blood and gore that would make any horror film director jealous. 

What started out as small interactions with Derek, turned into something _more_. They were hanging out a lot, just the two of them. Stiles often did a lot of his research and homework over at the loft even when the rest of the pack weren’t there. Derek made Stiles feel safe. The first month after his possession was one of the hardest months of his life, only second to his mother’s passing. His friends supported him in any way that they could, but it was Derek who had really pulled him through. Derek woke him up from terrible nightmares, talked him through his panic attacks, and always stood just a little bit closer than he normally did whenever they were in the same room together. Their shoulders brushed, their knees touched, Derek’s hand would linger on the small of Stiles’ back. Stiles wondered if it was just as reassuring to Derek as it was to Stiles. A reminder that Stiles was still here, that he survived. 

After he felt the darkness starting to pass, his usual lively self returning, their hangouts together turned away from supernatural research and towards things normal friends would do together. Sometimes they saw a movie or went for coffee. They ordered take out and watched true crime documentaries in the loft. They played video games and exchanged their favorite books. Derek had even shown Stiles his favorite hole in the wall bookshop so in return Stiles took Derek to this small diner on the edge of town that served the best apple pie in the world. He was slowly starting to break down the walls that Derek had built over the years, getting to know the alpha in ways he never dreamed he would. They had started pack bonding nights two months after the Nogitsune ordeal, which, Stiles could tell, was strengthening them. He could see it in the small curls of Derek’s lips that he was finally getting the family he deserved, and Stiles wanted to make sure that was never taken away from him. 

So, yeah. Stiles was falling pretty _fucking_ hard for Derek Hale. He felt lost in the alpha’s gravity, forever cursed to spin around him, never colliding. So, if fraternizing with his arch nemesis – no, Stiles was not being dramatic thank you very much – was what made Derek happy, how could he take that away?

“She’s human.”

Stiles startled so hard that he nearly fell out of his bed, arms flailing as they grabbed onto his sheets. He had been reading ahead, planning on showing up Ms. Adder when she inevitably called him out in class the next day. When he finally gathered himself, his heart pounding in his chest he looked around to see Derek standing just beside his window, arms crossed, his eyebrows raised in a way that looked completely unimpressed.

“Oh my god, Derek,” Stiles breathed as he shut his book, setting it down on the floor, “would it kill you to not scare me?”

“Maybe.” Derek said with a small smirk as he moved to sit down at the desk chair.

Stiles just shook his head wondering if his heart was still at its accelerated pace because of the scare or because Derek was now in his room sitting right across from him. It took him a moment to realize Derek had said something.

“Who is human?” He asked as he looked at Derek with interest.

“Your new English teacher.” Derek replied dryly like Stiles should have known whom Derek was referring to.

It suddenly occurred to Stiles that maybe what he had seen in the coffee shop wasn’t a date, but Derek investigating Stiles' claim that he didn’t trust the teacher. Stiles was taken aback for a moment. Everyone else had brushed him off, but Derek had actually taken the time to talk with Ms. Adder, be around her willingly, to get a good idea of whether she was an immediate threat or not. He felt the tight knot in his chest loosen just a bit

“I, uh, wow,” Stiles stumbled over his words, “okay, thanks for checking.” 

Derek just nodded his head.

“Why did you do that?” He asked, because now he needed to know. Maybe Derek was just humoring him, but then again humor and Derek didn’t exactly go hand in hand.

“You said you didn’t trust her and usually your judgment about these things is correct, so I looked into it.” Derek responded simply, like it wasn’t a big deal.

But it was. Derek trusted Stiles. Trusted him enough that he went out of his way to reassure Stiles that what he said was being taken seriously. 

“You know,” Stiles said with an impish grin, “humans can be just as dangerous as supernatural creatures, right? Haven’t you ever heard of Ted Bundy?”

Derek rolled his eyes at that. “Yes, Stiles, you made me watch that true crime documentary even though our lives are already a horror show.”

Stiles only grinned wider. “And aren’t hunters all human? Or, well, mostly human anyway.”

Stiles watched as Derek resisted rolling his eyes again, but he was more relaxed, tension draining away as he looked back at the human.

“Well,” Derek finally said, “she’s not a supernatural threat then, happy?”

Stiles nodded his head, before he remembered the image of the alpha laughing in the coffee shop. “So, does that mean…”

“You were at the coffee shop.” Derek groaned as he brought his palms up to his eyes, as if to block out Stiles’ prying gaze. “I thought I recognized your scent.”

Stiles felt his cheeks flushing slightly, wondering what he smelled like to Derek. Scott had once described Kira’s scent as something like Jasmine tea, lavender, and fresh rain. While that very well could have just been her body wash or shampoo Stiles felt that, to Scott, it was more than that. He tried to subtly smell himself, but all he could come up with was the faint scent of Old Spice lingering from his shower hours ago. While nice, it probably wasn’t anything to write poetry about. Not that he wanted Derek to write poetry about him or anything.

“No, it wasn’t a date, nor will there be a second one.” Derek grumbled, derailing Stiles’ brain from thinking about Derek writing poetry half naked in the morning sunlight of the preserve. “I think I learned my lesson with Jennifer Blake.”

Stiles couldn’t help the pleased smile filling his lips. “I don’t know, she seemed pretty into you.” Stiles teased earning another annoyed groan from Derek. “She did the classic finger twist in the hair when you said something that was supposed to be funny.”

Stiles was surprised Derek’s eyes didn’t fall out of his head with how hard and how many times he had rolled them in the past few minutes. Stiles could only grin in return.

“Hey,” he said, ignoring the stutter in his heart, “I finished my homework, want to stay and watch a movie?”

Derek eyed him for a moment, trying to catch him in a lie about his homework, but Stiles was true to his word. He had only been reading ahead to stick it to his English teacher (with whom Derek had _not_ been on a date with).

“Sure.” Derek finally said, trying not to smile. He shrugged out of his jacket before taking off his boots. “Please, for the love of god no true crime documentaries.”

“No promises.” Stiles grinned as he brought his laptop over to the bed where Derek was already making himself comfortable.

Once their movie was all queued up Stiles settled in next to the alpha, their sides pressed against each other. It was warm and safe and Derek.

-

Stiles figured if the pack wasn’t going to take him seriously about Ms. Adder then he would just have to investigate her himself. Derek had confirmed that she wasn’t a supernatural threat, but a lot of their greatest foes had honestly been human (see Gerard and Kate). If she really was just a teacher with a grudge against Stiles then he could live with that. He supposed someone had to fill Mr. Harris’ roll after he was unwillingly sacrificed.

He wasn’t exactly sure what he should be looking for, but he figured following her around the grocery store was a good start. The type of food you ate was very telling of the person you were – like the fact that Peter actually enjoyed the plain Cheerios over the Honey Nut ones, point in case – and maybe she was buying her cleaning supplies in bulk because she had come to murder the entire town. (He really needed to stop watching true crime). So that's how Stiles found himself outside of the grocery store after school, carefully waiting until Ms. Adder was inside before he snuck in.

He grabbed a basket, figuring he might as well buy snacks for their game night later. Derek’s supply was running low and nothing was more annoying than having to share his precious stash of chocolate chip cookies. He, thankfully, had a better day at school. He had pulled off a B plus on the chemistry test he hadn’t studied for and put Ms. Adder in her place when she tried to call him out during English. Allison had brought him coffee and he had the fortune of walking with at least one of his friends in the hallways throughout the day, giving Trevor a smug smile when they passed each other. 

Stiles calmly moved through the store, picking up things he knew the pack would like. It was weird how well he knew everyone’s cravings – and allergies – but, Stiles was an observant person and he enjoyed making his friends happy. He made sure to keep an eye on Ms. Adder, without seeming like he was following her. He had also improved in sneaking around over the years, much to his father’s chagrin. He turned down the chip aisle, surprised to see Derek scowling at the popcorn.

“Boyd likes the caramel and cheese mix flavor.” Stiles supplied helpfully as he pulled up next to Derek, a small smile on his face. He noticed that Derek also had a fill basket, but his snacks were a tad more healthy.

“What are you doing here?” Derek asked without looking up, reaching for the flavor Stiles had suggested, his scowl a little less angry now.

“Dude, it’s game night,” Stiles said casually, “and your snack stack was running low. I figured I could help restock it.”

Not a lie.

Derek looked up at Stiles slightly amused. “Except we have very different ideas on what the pack should be eating.” His eyes darted down to the double stuffed Oreos in particular. 

“I’ll have you know that Kira _and_ Jackson are big double stuffed fans.” He replied airily, pretending to give Derek’s fruits and vegetables a look of discontent. “If it weren’t for me the pack would think you’re trying to punish them.”

Derek just rolled his, but Stiles could see a smile tugging at his lips. “I was getting Boyd his popcorn.”

Stiles snorted. “So Boyd gets what he wants while the rest of us are stuck eating rabbit food?”

“Boyd listens and doesn’t drive me up the wall.” Derek teased, his eyebrows cocked in just a way that said _what are you going to do about it_?

“Fine,” Stiles said with a hard blink of his eyes, an impish grin forming on his lips, “I have no problem letting everyone know that Derek Hale plays favorites. We’ll see _exactly_ how that plays out.”

Derek just gave him a playful shove, flashing his eyes, but Stiles just laughed. Stiles couldn’t help, but notice that Derek had put his favorite chocolate chip cookies in the basket, tucked between a carton of strawberries and a bag of carrots. Stiles could feel his heart swelling in his chest as they moved over to the next aisle. Stiles nearly forgot why he had been there in the first place. Derek was distracting and Stiles couldn’t stop himself from falling into their typical flirtatious banter, well, at least Stiles thought it was flirtatious. 

They were in the middle of a heated debate of whether pizza rolls or bagel bites were better – pizza rolls were seriously supreme come on Derek – when the reason Stiles had come there in the first place came rolling down their aisle, eyes hungrily landing on Derek. 

“Derek, is that you?”

Stiles’ mouth snapped shut, his eyes narrowing slightly as they both turned to see Ms. Adder pushing her cart towards them, almost making a beeline for the alpha. Stiles had a half a mind to step in front of her, but he felt like she would just plow through him without blinking.

“Jacqueline.” Derek said with a polite nod.

Her eyes turned to Stiles for a moment and good _god_ if looks could kill Stiles would be a bloody mess on the floor.

“Mr. Stilinski, always a pleasure.” The tone in her voice clearly reflected the opposite. 

Stiles wanted to hit Derek who looked like he was holding back a snicker at the teacher’s obvious contempt for him. 

“The pleasure is all mine.” Stiles responded with a mock bow like the little shit he was. His lips tugged into a smile when he caught Derek refraining from rolling his eyes.

Ms. Adder gave him another once over before turning her full attention to Derek. Stiles didn’t mind because it gave him an opportunity to peak into her cart while she was distracted. He shuffled forward, pretending to look at a box of mozzarella sticks when he turned to peer inside. He was very much taken aback to see the amount of red meat piled in her cart. There had to be at least ten of the thickest and bloodiest steaks he had ever seen followed by several pounds of raw, ground beef. That was it. There were no fruits, vegetables, sides, condiments, or drinks. Not even a damn pint of ice cream. It was just meat. Lots of meat. Stiles could feel his arteries clogging just by looking at it. Who the fuck bought that much red meat and nothing else? That, Stiles noted, was not normal at all. 

“It’s rude to stare, Mr. Stilinski.” Ms. Adder said startling him.

“Planning a barbeque?” Stiles blurted out before he could stop himself. He had been so focused on how fucking weird the contents of her cart were that he hadn’t noticed she and Derek finishing their conversation.

“Aren’t you so funny.” She said, giving him a smile that appeared to be more of a sneer.

“The funniest.” Stiles replied as he rubbed the back of his neck while he laughed nervously. “Derek always doubles over at how amazing my jokes are.”

“He’s hilarious.” Derek deadpanned.

Stiles threw him a look, but he only got a scrunch of eyebrows in return that stated _I wasn’t trying to be helpful_.

“Well,” Ms. Adder said, looking between them thoughtfully, “I should really be going. I have a barbeque to attend.” Stiles scowled at the smirk she threw him. “Really, Derek, if you’re free this weekend I would love to get dinner, just let me know.”

They waited until she disappeared into the next aisle before Derek addressed him. “What did you do?” he asked, half amused and half exasperated. 

“Why do you assume _I_ did something?” Stiles asked, throwing his arms up in defense.

Derek just shrugged his shoulders, “Past experiences.”

Stiles jabbed the alpha with his elbow before he threw a giant bag of pizza rolls into Derek’s basket before he could argue.

“She singled me out the first day for no reason,” Stiles sighed as they worked their way towards the checkout aisle, “I didn’t even get a chance to be my usual self before she decided not to like me.”

Stiles caught Derek frowning. “That’s not fair.”

“Yes, I – wait, what?” Stiles tripped forward, distracted by Derek’s words. He was expecting Derek to say it didn’t take much for Stiles to be annoying, but Derek had said quite the opposite.

Derek wasn’t looking at him as he began unloading his groceries on the conveyor belt, but Stiles could see he was still frowning. Stiles fell into silence, waiting for Derek to explain himself, but the alpha said nothing more while he checked out. It wasn’t until they reached the parking lot did Derek speak again.

“I’m sorry she treats you like that.” He said somewhat softly. 

“I – it’s fine, I suppose.” Stiles said, still trying to catch something on the wolf’s face that would give him away.

“No,” Derek said looking at Stiles, “it’s not. You’re smart and a good person, Stiles. Yeah, you talk _ <i> _ _a lot_ _ </i> _, but you don’t deserve to be talked down to or glared at like that.”

Stiles was, for once, at a loss for words. He could hear the sincerity in Derek’s voice and the look he was giving Stiles was soft and thoughtful. He suddenly felt compelled to tell Derek about Trevor. It was something he had tried not to let bother him, a problem he could fix on his own when he had the time, but recently it had become overwhelming. He wanted to tell Derek so the alpha would go and threaten to rip the stupid jock’s throat out for even thinking of hurting Stiles. He came so close to letting it spill out, but at the last moment he shoved it all back down.

“You want to tell Jackson that?” Is what he said instead. He knew that Jackson was trying to be nicer – under Derek’s orders – and they had moved past enemies, but were barely sticking a toe in the friend department. Still, it was progress.

“I can only do so much.” Derek huffed, but he was smiling. “I’m not god after all.”

“No,” Stiles replied, “you’re just blessed with a god like body.”

“Goodbye, Stiles.” Derek said as he turned away.

“See you in a few hours!” Stiles replied brightly. Derek gave him a halfhearted wave and Stiles leaned back against his jeep. His smile faded as his brain filled with thoughts on Ms. Adder and Trevor. He sometimes wished all of his problems could be solved by a good banishing or claws through the throat, but that was not to be. He climbed into the Jeep, leaning his head against the steering wheel contemplating why it was so much easier to stand up to an alpha pack than a bully.

-

Stiles had tried his best to follow Ms. Adder around town over the next week, but somehow she kept weirdly disappearing. She appeared to be doing mostly normal things, although she had gone to the hardware store one too many times for Stiles liking. Not to mention all of the red meat she seemed to be consuming. He had watched her walk out of the store with another cart load of the stuff just a few days after he and Derek had run into her. So either she really did host a barbeque or she consumed _a lot_ of meat and that just didn’t seem healthy.

He didn’t bring up anything more to the pack about her because he knew the meat thing wouldn’t really raise red flags in their minds. He either needed to find some good, hard evidence or give up the search all together. The only place he could think of looking, besides her car - which he may have broken into and searched while she was in the store - was her desk at school. 

He thought about doing it late at night when she was guaranteed not to be there, but they were currently having a rogue wolf problem and Stiles just didn’t want to risk getting caught by their newest supernatural threat. With his recent luck he would have gotten injured and then he would have to explain why he was breaking into Ms. Adder’s desk in the middle of the night. He could just imagine the looks and the yelling he would receive for that one. So, he would just have to do it during her lunch break and pray to anyone listening that he didn’t get caught.

He hung just around the corner until he could hear her walking down the opposite hall, heels clicking against the linoleum loudly. He waited for the sound to fade before he quietly moved into the classroom. He laid his bag down and stood in front of her desk, wondering where to start. There were a few papers neatly organized and he quickly flipped through all of them. While he figured she wouldn’t just leave anything important out it was better safe than sorry to check. Sometimes these things were hiding in plain sight. He flicked open the drawers. thumbing through everything, but only coming up with disappointment. The last drawer was the bottom left one and he was surprised to find it locked. All the other ones hadn’t been, so maybe there was something hidden there.

He pulled his lock picking kit from his bag - thank you Isaac - and had it open within seconds. His head snapped up as he heard laughter in the hallway, but it was just a group of freshmen passing by the door. They hadn’t even noticed him. There were several thick stacks of paper and Stiles paled a little, knowing he wouldn’t have time to go through all of it before Ms. Adder got back. He eased onto his knees, eyes shifting over the words. He didn’t know exactly what he was looking for because he wasn’t exactly sure what kind of threat Ms. Adder was. The wolves had all deemed her a non supernatural threat, which was all well and fine, but she didn’t appear to be a hunter either. So what the fuck was she?

He chanced a glance up at the clock, knowing his time was running out. It wasn’t until he was reaching into the drawer for the second half of the stack did he see the nude folder poking out from the bottom of the papers at an odd angle, like it had been shoved in there fairly quickly. It took him a moment to haul it out in one piece, but when he opened it his eyes went wide. Inside the folder were packets with information about each member of the Hale-McCall pack, pictures and all. He could see notes, written in pen, on the sides of the margin that Ms. Adder must have added over the past two weeks.

“Holy fuck.” Stiles whispered as he read over them. He didn’t know what he had been expecting, but it wasn’t whatever the fuck this was. What was she doing? Why was she studying them?

He barely had time to process it all when he heard the familiar click of the heels coming down the hallway. He cursed himself for not pulling out his phone and taking photos, knowing there was no time now. He shoved the papers back into the folder, stuffing it back where he found it. He had contemplated taking it for all of five seconds, but she would have known it was him. He didn’t want her to think he was on to her yet, not when he didn’t have a goddamn idea of what she was planning. He could feel his heart beating in his chest as he slammed the drawer shut, running to where his bag was. He had just caught his breath, leaning casually against a student desk when she walked in. 

Her initial look of shock melted into something more malice as she sneered at him. “Mr. Stilinski, how can I possibly help you?”

Stiles cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. She was still glaring and it was a miracle he didn’t catch fire right there. “I wanted to ask you a question about our upcoming assignment about the hero's journey.” He finally managed to say, thankful she wasn’t a werewolf that could easily read his lie.

“I thought I explained the concept well enough,” She said, taking a seat at her desk, “or did you just choose to ignore the lesson?”

Stiles forced away his angry huff. He didn’t know who she was, but he had found proof that she was clearly a dangerous person so Stiles knew he had to tread lightly. “I was just having trouble picking the right book to write about.” He said as he adjusted his bag on his shoulder. “I thought you could give me a recommendation.”

Her smile didn’t reach her eyes as she tilted her head to the side to look at him. “Well, Mr. Stilinski, that all depends on what part of the hero’s journey you would like to focus on.”

Stiles hummed thoughtfully as he drummed his fingers against the desk he was leaning on. “I think I’d like to pick something not necessarily focused on the hero obtaining a romantic relationship.” He said after a moment his eyes meeting the ice blues staring at him curiously. “More along the lines of the hero doing whatever it takes to ensure the people they care about most are safe from those that would threaten or harm them.”

The threat was vague enough, but Stiles watched her eyebrows shoot up just a fraction of an inch, lips twitching in the corners. 

“And what do _you_ know about that, Stiles?” She asked, leaning forward across the desk.

Stiles swallowed the lump in his throat, ignoring the shiver running down his spine as she said his name. He shrugged, trying to go for casual indifference. “I watch a lot of movies.”

He noticed she tilted her head again, observing him with a thoughtful look, like she had misunderstood something from their first meeting. All he could think about were the files hiding just a few feet away from him. He was itching to get out of there and tell someone, but he remained rooted to the spot, not wanting to break whatever was going on between them. Stiles was nothing if not stubborn.

“I’ll think about that and try to find a book for you by next week.” Ms. Adder finally said, lips curling into a smile that was all teeth.

“Thanks,” Stiles replied curtly before turning on his heel to leave.

“Mr. Stilinski,” Stiles turned, giving her a weary look, but she was still smiling at him, “tell Derek I said hello and that I hope to hear from him soon about our date this weekend.”

Stiles felt his teeth grit together, his jaw trembling as he sharply turned away, her look of triumph burning into his skin.

She was lying. She was lying. _She was lying_!

Stiles felt tears pricking in the corner of his eyes and he hastily wiped them away as the bell rang, the hallways quickly filling with students. Derek had already told Stiles he wasn’t interested and that he learned his lesson after Jennifer. It wasn’t a date at the coffee shop and he promised there wasn’t going to be a second one so of course she had to have been lying.

Unless, Derek had lied first.

Maybe Derek had been annoyed at Stiles’ overreaction and after finding out that she wasn’t a threat he really was interested. Maybe Stiles had been reading his relationship with Derek wrong this whole time. Were soft eyes and fond smiles really just mistaken for looks of pity? Did Derek just tolerate him for the pack’s sake?

 _No_ _._

A small voice in his head growled, scarily close to sounding like Derek. It startled him out of his panic, forcing him to take a deep breath. Derek cared about him and Stiles knew that. They were friends, maybe on the verge of _something more_ , but Derek wouldn’t hurt him. Would _never_ hurt him like that. Ms. Adder was just trying to get under his skin and it had worked. He leaned his head against the wall, forcing his shaking hands inside the pockets of his hoodie. It nearly made him forget about what he’d found in her desk. Proof. Now he just needed to tell the others.

He barely had time to start down the stairs when he was shoved roughly to the side, his back colliding with the wall. He felt pain shoot up his spine, eyes scrunching closed as he released a small grunt. When he opened them he could see Trevor standing just in front of him, grinning.

“Haven’t seen you all day, Stilinski.” Trevor’s deep voice purred as he reached a hand out to fist the front of Stiles’ shirt.

“Hey!”

Stiles was both grateful for and dreading the voice that had just shouted up at then. Trevor quickly dropped his hand, shoving it into his pockets and started whistling casually like he hadn’t done anything wrong. The look on Scott’s face was murderous and he was up the stairs before Stiles could blink.

“McCall.” Trevor said with a small nod of his head.

“Did you just push Stiles?” Scott asked.

Stiles was surprised he didn’t see a hint of fangs or claws, but Scott’s voice did sound a good octave lower, growling more than he was talking. 

“Just messing around, bro, no need to get defensive.” Trevor responded, taking a small step back from Scott, which Stiles tried not to smile about.

“Well,” Scott snarled - _Jesus, Scott_ \- harshly, “if I see you near him again you’re going to seriously regret it.”

Stiles swore he saw the faintest color of red flash against those dark browns, but it could have just been a trick of the florescence. Either way Trevor’s smirk fell into a scowl and he threw Stiles a dirty look before he shoved past Scott.

“Whatever you say, McCall.” He called over his shoulder.

Scott was still glaring after the asshole and Stiles felt like he should have been relieved, but the look Trevor had given him stated that this clearly wasn’t over. Scott had, unknowingly, made it worse in Stiles’ mind, but for all he knew Trevor really was scared off.

“Are you okay?” Scott asked, his features softening as he looked at his best friend.

Stiles gave him a small smile. “I’ve faced worse than Trevor.” He said with a shrug of his shoulders.

“Does he do that a lot?” Scott asked as they fell in step with each other. Stiles could see him frowning now, like he was disappointed that he hadn't caught on sooner.

“He’s an asshole.” Stiles said simply.

Not a lie.

“S _tiles._ ” Scott just whined. “Why didn’t you tell us? Or me?”

“It’s not really a big deal, Scott.” Stiles argued. That was a little bit of a lie. “Besides, we have bigger problems than Trevor McCallister.”

Scott opened his mouth to argue, but both of their phones buzzed loudly. Stiles quickly pulled his out and noticed Scott doing the same. It was a text from Derek telling them they needed to have an emergency meeting about their rouge wolf problem. Scott groaned, head slumping against his chest.

“How the hell are we ever supposed to get into college if we fail all of our classes from late nights in the woods?”

Stiles just grabbed Scott’s shoulders giving them a firm squeeze. “Welcome to Beacon Hills, buddy.”

The files he found were burning in his mind, but Stiles put them aside for now. Telling Scott outright would mean he would have to admit to all of the sneaking around he had been doing over the past week. He had a feeling the pack wouldn’t really believe him until he was shoving the papers into their faces and since he didn’t currently have them, well, it would just have to wait. Maybe he could mention something to Derek at their meeting and they would be able to look into later.

-

Stiles had not, in fact, been able to mention his findings at the meeting as there had been no meeting in the first place. Their rogue wolf problem had turned into a pack of rogue wolves who had attacked Derek in the preserve before anyone had even reached the loft. This pushed the pack into rescue mode, having to come up with a plan on the fly. Stiles was glad the last few years battling the supernatural had made him _great_ at improvising.

It turned into another terribly long night, but thankfully they’d all come out of it alive and mostly unharmed. The wolves could heal, but Stiles and Allison were not as lucky. Allison had come away with a twisted ankle and Stiles was nursing a bruised wrist and a decently deep scratch along his hip. The pack was now sitting in Derek’s loft, attending to their slower healing injuries and decompressing after the event. It was agreed that they would all just crash there for the evening. There were pillows and blankets scattered across the floor, creating a makeshift sleeping area. After a few of their rougher nights they had all learned to keep an extra set of clothes in one of Derek’s spare room. There was something about being close to pack that offered a silent comfort that was needed after their longer nights. Lydia and Boyd were handing out steaming mugs of tea as the temperature had dropped significantly throughout the evening.

Stiles quietly thanked Lydia for his, wincing as Derek continued to clean the wound on his hip. He was thankful it wasn’t deep enough for stitches. He really hadn’t wanted to go to the hospital. He knew the bills were stacking up from all of his more frequent visits. If only hospitals came with a rewards card. Stiles would be a gold member. He was tired, unbelievably so. He hadn’t been sleeping well - big shock - but at least they didn’t have school in the morning. He was a little sad he didn’t have his pillow, though. 

“Any guesses on what terror will be storming into Beacon Hills next?” Isaac asked as he dropped his head into Allison’s lap. 

While the pack just groaned in response they all knew Isaac had a point. Stiles frowned deeply. The past few hours had made him completely forget that their newest threat was already here. He had been way too concerned with Derek’s safety to even think about Ms. Adder and her weird, creep files on everyone. Now it was at the forefront of his thoughts again. His eyes swept over his friends piled onto the pillows and blankets. Erica and Jackson were already passed out. Kira looked to be on her way as Scott ran soothing circles over her back with his fingers. He knew Allison shouldn’t be on her feet, despite the fact she wasn’t feeling any pain, courtesy of Isaac. Boyd had just made himself comfortable next to Erica and Lydia, while still looking remarkably gorgeous, was curled against Jackson, massaging her temples. Derek seemed to be the only one who didn’t look completely wiped, but even Stiles could see the exhaustion in the corner of his forest eyes.

Stiles understood there was never a good time to bring these things up, but he didn’t have the heart to stir everyone out of their comfort. He just sighed deeply, hoping his brain would allow his poor body some rest. He knew it wasn’t likely as his thoughts rapidly raced over the notes he had seen scribbled in the margins, trying to make sense of it all. It was like she was evaluating them, but why? What was the purpose? Was she trying to figure out who was the biggest threat? That was pretty obvious as it was either Scott or Derek, considering they were both the alphas. Maybe she was some sort of hunter and she was looking for supernatural creatures to auction off for some sick sport? Wouldn’t be the strangest thing Stiles had heard. He wished he had taken those files. He would have been able to look at them more closely now, taking his time to put all of the pieces together. He knew there was so much he was still missing and it bothered him. Maybe he could just sneak out while everyone was sleeping and head to the school…

“Stiles,” Derek spoke softly, “you are going to go lay down and sleep.”

Stiles scowled slightly. Had he been mumbling his plan while Derek had been bandaging him up? Or did he just have that look on his face that practically screamed _I’m going to go do something stupid as soon as I’m free_. 

“Fat chance.” Stiles snorted as he threw another look at the pile. It was a nice sentiment, cuddling with his supernatural friends for comfort, but more often than not he was left to fend on his own. Everyone else was already coupled off and he usually just snuck off to the couch when no one was looking. He mostly didn’t mind, but sometimes it was a little lonely lying in a room with no one to hold or no one to hold him. Besides, his mind didn’t seem like it would be slowing down anytime soon.

“Sleep.” Derek said again as he took Stiles’ empty mug before he jerked his head towards an open spot in the pile. It was right between the Erica-Boyd and Scott-Kira cuddle puddle.

Stiles just rolled his eyes, wondering how he had gotten _so lucky_. At least Scott had been nice enough to save the best pillow in the loft for him, knowing Stiles would be mourning his own. He would just sneak off to the couch once Derek turned in for the night in his own bed. He obediently shuffled to the spot Derek had indicated, grabbing his favorite throw from one of the baskets to take with him. Stiles listened to Derek cleaning up in the kitchen, focusing on the alpha’s quiet movements. He could hear the steady breaths of his friends around him, indicating that he and Derek were the only ones still awake. After a few more moments Derek flicked the lights off and disappeared into his bedroom. 

Stiles starred up at the ceiling, watching the shadows from the moonlight dance across the smooth surface. While he wouldn’t say he was completely relaxed his body was tired enough that he probably wouldn’t make it to the couch for the evening. He closed his eyes, trying to find a soft sound to focus on so he could clear his mind. His brain was still nagging at him to pay attention to the problem at hand.

_f we can’t figure this out then we might lose them_

It was a dangerous thought that often plagued him in his weak and exhausted moments. He would always be afraid he wasn’t smart or clever enough to work out what was going on and it would cost him the lives of his friends. Another _lovely_ side effect from his possession. Stiles knew it wasn’t all on him to save the day, but he felt a terrible weight on his shoulders, always waiting for the next boot to drop. What if, this time, he was too late? What if his need - his desire - to rest put them in jeopardy? If he was awake then he might as well be useful with his time and do something about-

A soft thud to his left startled him and he turned, blinking in the darkness, to find Derek had laid down next to him. They were close enough that Derek’s side was just pressed against Stiles. Stiles knew his heart had already been racing from his spiralling thoughts, but now it was positively beating out of his chest. Derek usually never joined them for their sleepovers in the living room, seemingly above it all when he had his own bed. 

“What - what are you doing?” Stiles whispered after a moment when he realized Derek had made himself comfortable.

“Going to bed, like you should be.” Derek replied dryly.

“You have a bed,” Stiles pointed out, like literally pointed to the room in case Derek had forgotten, “in there.”

Derek didn’t say anything, but shifted slightly, causing Stiles to slide right in next to him. Despite the hard line of his muscles Derek was warm and comfortable. Stiles felt his cheeks burning, but, by some miracle, his heart was no longer bursting out of his chest. His eyes suddenly felt very heavy, his body sinking into the pillows beneath him.

“So warm.” Stiles murmured.

He felt an arm hesitantly wrap around his waist and when he hummed in contentment it settled comfortably against him. 

“I found proof.” He heard himself say and even though his eyes were closed he could _feel_ Derek’s eyebrows shooting up. 

He didn’t bother saying anymore because he was way too happy where he was. He almost felt like he was in a dream and he didn’t want to ruin the moment with his never ending babble. So, he just let Derek pull him a little closer as he drifted off into a peaceful sleep. 

-

Stiles couldn’t be sure whether Derek cuddling him had been a dream or not. When he had woken up Derek was already in the kitchen making breakfast for the pack. He ran his fingers over the space where he thought Derek might have been laying only moments ago. He closed his eyes again, taking a deep breath, the smell of fresh coffee filling him. It had been one of the best nights of sleep he had gotten in the past few months. The heavy breathing around him indicated that the pack was still asleep, but would probably be stirring soon as the smell of bacon wafted through the air. Stiles slowly got to his feet, stretching and padding over to the kitchen where Derek was working.

“Morning.” Stiles yawned, leaning across the island. 

He was used to sleeping in on Saturdays, but he realized he didn’t mind being up a little earlier than normal. The sun was slanting beautifully through the windows, a light layer of frost tinting the corners. There were a few birds chirping happily, like they were wishing them all a good morning. Derek only offered Stiles a small smile as he placed a mug of hot coffee in front of him before he turned back to the stove, working on a large pan of eggs. Stiles wrapped his hands around the mug, grinning into his drink. Derek had somehow made it just the way he liked it. This, he realized, was something he could get used to. Waking up next to Derek, making breakfast together and enjoying a cup of coffee while the birds flitted in the morning sunlight. His chest suddenly ached with the desire for this to be their new normal. He wanted to push away every thought of the supernatural and just live in these quiet moments where he could watch Derek move without stress or worry, humming softly to himself. Stiles wanted to walk around the counter, wrap his arms around Derek’s waist and press into the warmth of his back. He wanted to trail kisses up his spine and just enjoy life again.

He hissed in pain, his bruised wrist bending the wrong way. He nearly dropped the mug, shattering the illusion he had been building in his head. He carefully sat it down, wincing in pain as he grabbed it. Before he could say anything another pair of fingers traced his skin. Stiles watched as the black lines ran up Derek’s arms, who was now pressed gently against his side. If Stiles turned his face would only be inches from Derek’s own. When the lines had disappeared Stiles expected Derek to move away, go back to what he was doing, instead he remained where he was. Forest eyes met golden, amber ones.

“Thanks.” Stiles murmured. 

Thanks for taking the pain from his wrist. Thanks for not letting him be alone last night. Thanks for believing him. Thanks for pulling him through his darkest moments. Thanks for being there. Thanks for caring. Thanks for…

Just _thanks_.

Derek nodded his head, like he understood all of the unspoken things Stiles had tried to put into that one word. Stiles didn’t know what was happening, but Derek’s eyes flickered to his lips and suddenly he was leaning in and holy fucking shit this was actually happening he was going to _kiss_ Derek and-

“Is that bacon?”

Both men jumped and Derek was suddenly back at the stove, causing Stiles to stumble forward, as he had been leaning on the alpha wolf. The rest of the pack was filling into the kitchen with hungry eyes, oblivious to the moment they had just interrupted. All except, maybe Lydia, who just shook her head, shooting Derek an exasperated look. Stiles tried to hide his blushing cheeks by taking a big gulp from his coffee. The pack at breakfast together, everyone in much better spirits after their night of rest. Stiles noticed that Derek happily kept himself busy by engaging in conversation with Boyd and Isaac.

Stiles tried not to let his disappointment show when he volunteered to help clean up, but was just brushed aside, saying the betas needed to be put to work before they were to report to the preserve to go on a morning run. He left the loft feeling utterly confused. It wasn’t until he was halfway home that he realized he had forgotten to bring up the stupid creep files to anyone that would listen. 

He spent the rest of the day hanging out with his dad since he had the morning off. Stiles tried not to glance down at his phone too much during the day. He knew Derek wasn’t much of a texter, but he felt like whatever the fuck happened - or not happened in this case - in the kitchen needed to be talked about. For the longest time Stiles had always felt like whatever was going on between them was a one way conversation. He never expected Derek to ever like him like _that_ in return. It was too much to hope for. Why would someone like Derek - alpha werewolf, hottest person in Beacon Hills, speaker and reader of multiple languages, all around badass - Hale have any romantic interested in someone like Stiles - spastic, loud mouthed, danger prone, and all around weirdo - Stilinski? Sure, he had filled out over the years and he’d like to think he was generally attractive - but _good lord_ have you seen his pack? - and he was pretty damn smart, but Derek was well above a ten and Stiles wasn’t even allowed to be on the same scale.

Stiles had tried very hard to overcome his insecurities and reminded himself he did have a place in the pack. There had always been doubts - and weeks of being possessed by an evil spirit only amplified those fears - but Stiles liked to think he felt comfortable where he was. He knew his friends loved him and even if they would never admit it he knew they needed him. He was kind of like the glue holding them all together. One wrong move with Derek could shatter everything they had built. Stiles didn’t want to be the reason the Hale-McCall pack fell apart.

Stiles rubbed at his eyes, wondering if he should just call it a night. Scott and Kira had gone out to a movie. Boyd and Erica were at dinner. Isaac was probably cuddling up with an injured Allison. Lydia had already sent out the “Do Not Disturb” text and Stiles wasn’t really on hang out one on one terms with Jackson yet. 

And Derek had gone radio silent all morning.

Stiles mulled over texting him all of five seconds before he turned on his tv, ready to play video games the rest of the evening. Maybe he would find the courage to speak with Derek tomorrow. As if the werewolf’s ears were burning Derek was suddenly sweeping through Stiles’ window.

“You know I have a door.” Stiles said dryly without looking up from his game, thankful that Derek hadn’t given him a heart attack this time. Although, now that Derek was here they were really going to have to talk about what happened earlier. Stiles hadn’t had time to summon his courage yet.

“And yet your window is always unlocked.” Derek pointed out. He gave Stiles an unimpressed look when his character was killed by a rookie mistake on Stiles’ part.

“Point taken.” Stiles huffed as he set his controller down, bracing himself for the inevitable heartache that was sure to come. Derek was clearly here to tell him that whatever happened this morning was a moment of weakness and Stiles had been reading it wrong. To his great surprise Derek’s next words weren’t about the moment in the kitchen at all.

“Where’s your proof?”

Stiles’ face scrunched in confusion. “What?”

“Last night,” Derek said, “you mentioned you had proof. I can only imagine that it has something to do with you stalking your English teacher all week.”

Stiles opened his mouth to ask how Derek knew that, but decided against it. Derek had a weird way of just knowing things, maybe because he had spent nearly an entire year creeping around Scott. 

“I was _not_ stalking her,” Stiles said instead, getting to his feet, “I was conducting a thorough investigation.”

He expected Derek to roll his eyes, but the alpha just gave Stiles an amused expression. “And?”

Stiles rubbed his hands together, glad he finally had someone to talk to about this. It had been buzzing in the back of his mind all weekend. “It will be better if I show you.”

“You don’t have the proof with you?” Derek asked with an arched eyebrow.

Stiles shook his head. “There wasn’t enough time and I didn’t want Ms. Adder to get suspicious.”

Derek looked slightly put out, but not deterred as he just gave Stiles a small nod of his head. Although, his eyebrows clearly stated _You are going to be the death of me_ , which only made Stiles grin. He got that look a lot. 

“Well,” Derek sighed as he pulled his keys from his pocket, “where is it?”

“It’s in her desk,” Stiles said as he grabbed a hoodie, “at the school.”

-

Stiles had been in the school several times after hours, but it never seemed to get any less creepier. Maybe that was because every time he had been there he had either been attacked or left for dead, so really, not many pleasant memories associated with Beacon High after dark. This time he had Derek by his side so he felt immensely more at ease as they moved down the empty hallways. Stiles realized, with a small frown, it was entirely too easy to break into the school and he wondered if officials had just given up considering how many weird things had occurred over the last few years.

Stiles also realized that there were better ways to be spending his Saturday night. The rest of the pack were out having a good time, pretending to be normal, and yet here he and Derek were. Breaking into the school to find proof about some threat to their pack and livelihood. It was kind of unfair that he and Derek did most of the grunt work to ensure that they all stayed alive. Would Stiles rather be out at the movies or dinner with Derek instead of crawling around blindly, waiting for the next terrible thing to happen? Of course he would!

He paused right outside the classroom door, sighing heavily. He suddenly felt the weight of the world on his shoulders. He knew part of the reason he dove so hard into the research was because he wanted to make sure that what happened to him - evil spirit possession - never happened to anyone else. He couldn’t stop every supernatural big bad from making their way to their town, but he could damn well be prepared. He could use his mind, figure out their plan, and mitigate the damage. It was the least he could do after everything that had happened almost a year ago.

“Stiles,” Derek’s hand was a warm comfort on his shoulder, “are you okay?’

Stiles forced a smile, but he knew Derek could see right through it. “I’d rather be at a movie or maybe dinner.” He admitted with a small shrug of his shoulder. 

“It’s a bit late for dinner.” Derek responded, a small smile tugging at his lips.

“Not with that attitude.” Stiles said as he elbowed Derek lightly in the side. “Haven’t you ever heard of the fourth meal?”

“Isn’t that a Taco Bell thing?” Derek groaned, like the mere thought of the restaurant was giving him indigestion.

Stiles only chuckled as he quickly made work of the lock on the door, before moving inside. Ms. Adder’s desk looked just the way it did when Stiles had investigated it Friday morning. There were still papers stacked neatly in the corner, a couple of books propped up on the sides, and a clean coffee cup sitting on the white calendar. Stiles kneeled down by the drawer he had pulled the files out of, picking the lock. Derek stood quietly behind him, arms crossed against his chest.

“Do you remember when we ran into Ms. Adder in the grocery store?” Stiles asked as he looked up at Derek for a moment.

“Yes.” Derek said with a nod of his head.

“Well, while you two were busy flirting,” that earned him a growl, “I was peaking into her cart.”

“I recall you asking if she was having a barbeque.” Derek replied dryly, causing Stiles to snort a laugh.

“Right,” Stiles said as the lock clicked open, “did you actually see what was in her cart?” He slid the drawer open, the large stacks of papers filling it to the top, nearly spilling over. Derek’s lack of response prompted Stiles to continue talking. “Meat. It was all meat, Derek. Like pounds of raw ground beef and the bloodiest steaks I have ever seen.”

“That’s...interesting.” Derek said after a moment.

“That’s _weird_ , Der,” Stiles said as he threw the alpha a quick glance, “like really weird. Who just buys a bunch of red meat? Cannibals?”

Derek snorted at the comment as Stiles began pulling papers from the drawer, his eyes searching for the folder he had tucked back into the stack.

“That’s not the only thing.” Stiles continued. “She’s taken multiple trips to the hardware store and she keeps disappearing whenever I get too close.” 

He continued to pull things out, eyes narrowing slightly at every folder he held. So far he was coming up empty. He could feel his heart rate pick up as the stack became smaller and smaller. He cleared his throat, knowing they were in here. They _had_ to be.

“Circumstantial, I know” Stiles quickly said as he caught the look on Derek’s face, “that’s why I didn’t say anything until I found this folder in her desk. It had a packet of information on each member of the Hale-McCall pack.”

“What?” Derek asked, a bit of shock in his tone.

Stiles nodded his head. “There were pictures of all of us and notes written in pen on the side, like she was marking her observations.”

Derek was next to him now, flipping through the pile Stiles had already gone through. His hands began to tremble slightly as he reached the last folder, but there was nothing inside. It was here. He had seen them, held them in his hands. The file had been here. 

It was here. It was here. _It was here_!

Stiles could feel Derek looking at him now, but he just ignored it as he grabbed the papers, hastily going through them again. When he checked a third time, a fourth time he pulled open another drawer, tearing through its contents.

“Stiles.”

“No,” Stiles said as he ripped another drawer open, nearly breaking it, “Derek the folder was here. I held it in my hand, I saw it with my own eyes!”

He looked at every page carefully, just to be sure. He grabbed the books from the desk, flipping through them and dumping them on the floor when they revealed no secrets. He tore through papers, his heart rate elevating with every wrong turn.

“Stiles.” Derek’s deep voice came again, a hand at the small of his back.

“She must have taken them.” Stiles muttered as he pushed away from Derek pacing angrily in front of the desk. “She knew I was on to her.”

“Stiles,” Derek was in front of him now, “it’s okay.”

“No!” Stiles cried as he tugged at his hair. “It’s not okay! Derek, I know that folder exists, I’m not making this up. I’m not lying!”

“I know you’re not lying.” Derek replied calmly. 

“But you don’t believe me, either.” Stiles paused in his step, giving Derek a horrified look. 

Derek opened his mouth to reply, but it was too late. Everything Stiles had been bottling up the past week suddenly came spilling out. All of his frustrations and his insecurities were pouring over like lava, hot and deadly.

“I’m so _tired_ of everyone in this pack not trusting me!” Stiles spat, aiming a kick at the nearest desk, toppling it over. “I stay up late, sacrificing my time to research and plan so that maybe, just maybe all of us can survive this hell hole!” He let a humorless laugh, tugging harder at his hair.. “And no one even listens to those plans! They all think they’re so much better, so much smarter than Stiles. Why listen to the token human when they can do whatever they want because they have supernatural powers?”

“Stiles…” Derek’s face was filled with concern.

“Not to mention when I stick my neck out for them and save their asses I get yelled at for getting injured!” He could see Derek wincing, but he didn’t care, right now he just didn’t care. “Sorry my body doesn’t heal like the rest of you! No one ever yells at Allison and she’s human! Nope, just Stiles, because Stiles is the idiot who faces danger with a fucking baseball bat.”

He could feel the tears now, pricking in the corner of his eyes. Derek was still watching him, pain laced in his handsome features. 

“No one else volunteers to spend endless hours or sleepless nights making sure we’re prepared for the next terrible thing to come waltzing through the preserve. No one has to worry about being smart enough to find a solution to our monster problem before it kills too many innocent people.” Stiles was shaking now, but he couldn’t stop. Hot tears poured down his cheeks, but he didn’t stop. “It’s all on Stiles because that’s his contribution to the pack. Because, apparently, all Stiles can manage to do is get possessed by a chaotic fox spirit and nearly destroy everything he loves!”

His next outburst was cut off was he felt strong arms wrap around him in a tight embrace. Stiles wanted to fight it. He wanted to keep yelling and screaming about how he was tired. He was so tired of this life and he just wanted out. Instead, he just sagged into Derek, letting the alpha hold him like he’s always wanted. Stiles’ fingers dug into the worn leather of Derek’s jacket, trying to force his anger away. He knew it wasn’t Derek’s fault. Derek had been through so much too and he didn’t deserve to be yelled at like that, but the panic at not finding the file had pushed Stiles over the edge.

“I do believe you.” Derek murmured into the mess of Stiles’ hair.

Stiles pulled away slightly, but didn’t let Derek go. “You do?”

Derek nodded his head, offering Stiles a small smile. “I was trying to tell you that before…”

Stiles felt his cheeks burning as he ducked his head to avoid Derek’s gaze. “Sorry,” he mumbled, “I didn’t mean-”

“Don’t apologize, Stiles.” Derek said immediately. “You’ve been through more than some people will experience in a hundred lifetimes.”

“You’ve been through worse.” Stiles said with a shrug, knowing he shouldn’t have let his anger get to him.

“It’s not a contest.” Derek said with a roll of his eyes, but then his face got a little more serious. “And I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Stiles asked, ignoring the rapid beat of his heart as he realized Derek was still holding onto him tightly. 

“Because I yell at you when you get injured.” He said with a small frown. “It’s only because...well...I worry about you.” Derek managed to get out after a moment.

Stiles was grinning now. “Derek Hale worries about me?”

“More than you know.” Derek whispered, his thumb brushing gently against Stiles’ cheek.

Suddenly, the moment felt charged, like the air between them was filled with electricity. Stiles was looking into those beautiful forest eyes he had come to love so much over the years, his lips parting slightly. He was reminded of how warm Derek felt pressed against his side when he fell asleep, an arm thrown around his waist, pulling him closer. Derek made him feel safe. Wanted. He’d always known he was destined to be sucked in by Derek’s gravity, pulled like a magnet, lost forever with no escape. 

Maybe Derek had been captured by Stiles too.

“I like waking up next to you.” Derek said, pressing his forehead against Stiles’, eyes fluttering close.

“I could wake up next to you forever.” Stiles replied before he summoned all of his courage and closed the distance between them.

The kiss was both everything and nothing like Stiles had imagined. Derek’s lips were warm and soft, fitting perfectly against his own. It was slow, tongues brushing against lips, like they were taking the time to memorize each other. Stiles pressed himself closer and Derek’s mouth moved hot against his own, teeth gently tugging on Stiles’ lower lip. Stiles arms wrapped around Derek’s neck, fingers intertwining in his dark hair. Stiles wanted to be closer, closer, so much _closer_. Derek seemed to understand as he pulled him against his chest tighter, hands slipping under his hoodie, resting against his skin. 

They stumbled backwards into the desk and Stiles was laughing against Derek’s lips, suddenly remembering where they were. Derek only growled as he leaned in to kiss Stiles again, eyes flashing red for a moment. Stiles let him, tilting his head to the side, the alpha immediately moving to his neck. A small moan escaped his lips as Derek sucked at his pale skin, teeth and tongue moving in a way that was simply obscene.

“As hot as it would be to do many things here,” Stiles said with a small gasp as Derek’s hips rocked against his own, “I don’t think I want to ruin this by getting caught in the school in the middle of the night.”

Derek reluctantly pulled back, knowing Stiles had a point. Stiles was still grinning as he watched Derek’s cheeks flush slightly in the moonlight.

“My, uh, dad, is working the late shift, so I can let him know I’ll be staying at the loft tonight.” Stiles offered.

This earned him a smile and another kiss as Derek swept him back into his arms for a moment. They quickly cleaned up the classroom before heading out for the evening, hand in hand. Stiles threw one, last fleeting glance over his shoulder, figuring he could find the folder later. He was going to spend one night doing something he wanted for a change and damn the consequences.

-

Stiles slowly blinked his eyes open, a small smile tugging at his lips as Derek’s soft face came into view. The wolf was still asleep, arms wrapped securely around Stiles’ waist. Birds chirped happily in the morning sun, the frosty edges of the windows allowing the warm rays to to pour over the pair. For a moment, one small, peaceful moment, Stiles felt normal. There was no need to burst out of bed and hunch over books for hours. No urge to make sure the town wasn’t burning to the ground. No panic about whether they were going to be attacked or not. 

It was just Derek and Stiles.

Stiles hummed quietly to himself, fingers playing with Derek’s hair. He wanted this moment to last as long as possible, because he knew as soon as he stepped foot out of this bed that they would be thrust back into the nightmare that was their lives. He could feel the slightest hint of dread pooling in his stomach as he remembered he would have to find Ms. Adder’s creep files sooner rather than later, but Derek had believed him and that’s all that mattered. Derek shifted, green eyes blinking up sleepy, a smile curling against his lips.

“Morning, Sourwolf.” Stiles teased with a grin.

“Oh, you’re still here?” Derek asked, voice still groggy.

Stiles shoved him playfully, earning a chuckle from the alpha. “Rude. I seem to remember _you_ wrapping your arms around _me_ so that I couldn’t leave.”

Derek cocked an eyebrow like the dick he was. “I can’t recall.”

“Oh,” Stiles said, wagging his eyebrow, giving his - boyfriend? _Fuck yes_ boyfriend! - a mischievous grin, “you’ll remember this.”

Stiles moved so that he was on top of Derek now, his lips moving down the alpha’s stomach. He paused at Derek’s hip, tongue and teeth working against the skin dipping in that beautiful V shape. Derek’s moan went straight to Stiles’ dick, but he continued to work until a nice bruise had formed. Stiles knew that if he looked in the mirror he would find _several_ markings across his neck and torso, which he did not mind one bit. 

“ _Stiles_.” Derek whined.

Stiles only gave him a shit eating grin in return. He glanced over at the clock and knew he would need to get home soon. He had a mountain of homework waiting for him and he needed to think about his next move when it came to Ms. Adder. Stiles sighed, glad he had gotten a few hours of a normal life. He started to move out of the bed, but Derek quickly grabbed him.

“Where are you going?” Derek growled.

Stiles laughed as the alpha pulled him into a kiss. “Some of us have homework to do.”

“I’m sure you can manage that later.” Derek murmured into Stiles’ skin.

Stiles’ argument died on his tongue as Derek pulled him closer. He was right. Stiles could totally do his homework later. 

-

By the time Monday morning rolled around Stiles was in very good spirits. His terrible week was behind him now and things were really starting to look up. He and Derek had finally broken the tension between them and they had come up with a semi solid plan on how to deal with Ms. Adder. While Stiles knew another monster of the week would rear its ugly head sooner rather than later he was glad that the rest of the weekend was quiet. The pack could actually breathe and maybe Stiles could make it through the week without another long list of injuries. At least ones that weren’t inflicted by his own clumsiness that is. 

“Jesus Christ,” Scott said as a way of greeting when he stopped by Stiles’ locker, “you _reek_ of Derek.”

Stiles just grinned. “I warned you.”

He may have totally called Scott as soon as he left Derek’s to tell him what had happened. Scott, bless him, was beyond excited for the two of them. Scott loved love and Stiles knew he could count on his best friend to be supportive. Lydia had just called both of them idiots when he told her, but he could hear the happiness in her voice. 

“Just wait until the rest of the betas get a whiff of you.” Scott teased as he readjusted his backpack. 

“Oh,” Stiles replied, his grin just growing wider, “Derek has informed me they haven’t shut up about it since their training session yesterday.” 

Scott just laughed as they moved down the hall together for English before throwing an arm around Stiles, beaming. “I really am happy for you!”

“Don’t get sappy on me now, McCall.” Stiles growled as he pointed a finger at his best friend, earning another laugh from the younger alpha.

When he entered the classroom the first thing he spotted was Erica’s wicked grin and Isaac’s smug smile as they stared at him. He strolled over to his seat, pretending like he had no idea why they were looking at him.

“I thought Derek really smelled like you, but that’s nothing compared to how you smell.” Erica whispered into his ear, breath hot against his skin. 

Stiles felt his face flush, but he just shrugged his shoulders, giving her a sheepish smile. Derek, apparently, was very territorial and who was Stiles to argue with his super hot alpha wolf boyfriend?

“I’m just glad we don’t have to sit through your sexual tension anymore.” Isaac mumbled as he leaned over, pinching Stiles in the side.

Stiles batted his hand away. “What are you talking about? We weren’t _that_ obvious!” He could hear Scott snort from beside him and Stiles came to the horrible realization that his friends were the absolute _worst_ letting both of them dance around each other like idiots. 

“He really is happy, though.” Erica said softly and Stiles decided maybe they weren’t that bad after all. 

“Me too.” Stiles murmured.

The bell rang and Ms. Adder came strolling into class, looking evil and gorgeous as always. She was halfway through a sentence, telling them to get their books out, when she paused, her head snapping in Stiles’ direction. Stiles froze in his seat as he watched her inhale deeply, before a terrifying scowl crossed her face. It only lasted a moment and as everyone was busy taking out their books no one had seen it except Stiles. He quickly looked away, feeling like if they locked eyes for much longer he would spontaneously combust. When Stiles finally looked back up her face was composed, her too knowing smile returned. She politely told them to begin reading before excusing herself for a moment.

“That was weird.” Stiles mumbled to himself. He hadn’t found her folder and he was pretty sure she knew something was up, but she was currently holding all of the cards. What did she have to be upset about? He tried not to think about it as he focused on the chapter. 

Ms. Adder didn’t return until class was nearly over and as Stiles left the room he caught one of her intense glares she specifically reserved for him. He couldn’t help, but feel slightly smug that he had done _something_ to piss her off. He just wished he knew what. 

The rest of the week passed by in a blur. Stiles felt himself focusing less and less on Ms. Adder, though she was never put out of his mind completely. She hadn’t been doing anything except glare at him every time he passed in and out of her classroom, which Stiles was kind of used to by now. He wondered if she had just given up whatever she had been planning. There hadn’t been any more supernatural incidents and the pack had gotten together to do fun and relaxing things that didn’t involve running through the forest at odd hours of the night. Besides, Derek provided a very good distraction from most other things. He was sleeping better and he and Allison had nearly recovered from their injuries against the feral wolf pack. Best of all Trevor didn’t come near Stiles all week! Maybe Scott’s threat had scared the asshole off. 

Stiles felt happy, really happy. 

He tried not to dwell on the fact that things never stayed good for too long. Their lives were never that easy. Still, he pushed those thoughts from his mind when they gathered at Derek’s loft Thursday for game night. Stiles knew something definitely was going to go wrong soon when Jackson - _Jackson_!- had picked Stiles to be his partner, much to Derek’s chagrin. Stiles tried to tone down his snark as he could see that Jackson was really trying to be nice. Stiles thought, maybe, it was just because they both knew at this point they were going to be stuck with each other forever. It helped immensely when they had defeated the Lydia-Derek dream team - because who thought it was a good idea to put two of the smartest people together on the same team? - in Pictionary. 

Stiles could tell that Derek was more at ease, his smile wider, laugh a little brighter, and his expressions a little softer. He was always right next to Stiles, arm around his shoulder or waist, hand resting on a knee. It was nice and comfortable. Plus, they only got a few smirks and knowing glances thrown in their direction from the rest of the pack. If Stiles and Derek had to deal with the rest of them being lovey dovey over the past few years then they could all suck it up. Although, Stiles felt like the pack didn’t mind one bit. 

It wasn’t until he woke up late the next morning that Stiles felt like his week was going to take a turn for the worst. Apparently, he had forgotten to plug in his phone when he went to bed, which meant it had died sometime in the middle of the night. He’d had a stupid nightmare - thanks evil fox spirit - which meant he was exhausted and groggy as he quickly moved into the bathroom to get ready. The shower had decided it didn’t want to give him any hot water, there was no time for coffee, and he realized he would have to skip breakfast entirely if he wanted to make it on time for class.

All in all not one of his better mornings and worst of all he couldn’t text Derek to complain because his phone was still dead! He wouldn’t have the opportunity to charge it until lunch. He also didn’t like the hungry look in Trevor’s eye as they passed in the hallway, his smirk looking particularly assholey today.

“Your hoodie is on backwards.” Scott noted as Stiles rushed to his seat, not wanting to give Ms. Adder any more reason to be pissed off at him.

“What?” Stiles asked as he looked down. He groaned and quickly switched it around, wondering how he had gone through the morning without noticing. The weird looks he had received now made sense. “Can you text Derek and tell him my phone died and that I have _not_ been kidnapped.”

Scott snorted a laugh as he pulled out his phone to text Derek. He only laughed again at what Stiles assumed was Derek’s snarky reply.

“He says you’re an idiot.” Scott read with an amused expression on his face. 

Stiles just rolled his eyes. “Politely remind Derek I learned that from him.”

Scott ignored Stiles, stowing his phone away. “I am not going to carry on your flirty conversation just because your phone died.”

Stiles just scoffed. Rude. He thought Scott was his best friend, how could he betray him like this? He didn’t have time to argue because the bell had rung and Ms. Adder had strolled into class and now Stiles could really feel his blood running cold. He had been used to her glares, her sneers, and her snarls, but the looks she was giving him now was filled with pure and utter delight. 

And that scared the shit out of him. 

Stiles swallowed the lump in his throat, quickly averting his gaze. It was like Ms. Adder had just won first place and he was the prize. He could see Scott and Isaac giving him a concerned look and he knew Erica’s eyes were burning into the back of his head. His heart was beating like crazy and he knew his anxiety was through the roof. All of his previous thoughts of her giving up on whatever she had been planning were going right out the window. She looked like a woman with a plan and Stiles didn’t like it one bit. He tried to swallow back his panic, knowing it was causing his friends distress. He reached into his pocket to text Derek, cursing when he remembered it was dead. 

He took a deep breath. 

It was the middle of the morning in a school full of hundreds of people. She wouldn’t dare pull anything now, that would be way too bold. He would just have to text Derek at lunch and they would start keeping an eye on her again. He silently cursed himself for slacking off recently. He should have been paying more attention. Most of the class was spent thinking of all of the possible evil deeds Ms. Adder was going to carry out soon, each one more crazy and wilder than the last (Stiles had an overactive imagination after all). As soon as the bell rang he quickly packed up his stuff, hoping to book it before Ms. Adder could give him anymore hungry looks, when she called out his name.

“Mr. Stilinski, a moment please.”

Stiles felt his heart drop into his stomach as he paused in the doorway. He let out a small breath, moving as people started shoving past him. His friends just threw him another look of concern before disappearing into the hallway. Knowing he couldn’t avoid her any longer he turned, only getting as close as he needed to.

“Yes, Ms. Adder?” He asked, trying to keep his voice even.

“I have your book recommendation.” She replied, giving him a sweet smile.

“Oh?” He asked looking around her desk for said book, but not seeing it.

Ms. Adder laughed - a terrible sound - and got up from her desk, moving so that she was standing on the same side as Stiles. “I forgot it in my car, would you mind coming around after your lacrosse practice to pick it up before I head out for the day?”

That raised every red flag in Stiles’ book, but he just nodded his head, not wanting to draw her suspicion. “Sure,” he cleared his throat, “that sounds fine, thanks.”

Her smile only grew wider. “I think you’re really going to love it.”

Stiles only nodded his head before he booked it from the room. He didn’t know why he was so terrified at the thought of going to her car, but that was usually how bad kidnapping stories started and Stiles did _not_ want to be kidnapped thank you very much. He would just have to make sure he was on the phone with Derek or one of the other pack members was with him so she wouldn’t try anything funny.

-

Stiles cursed whatever higher power was currently ruining his life as his stomach growled loudly. He had gotten in trouble in his class before lunch and was forced to serve lunch detention, which meant he didn’t get a chance to eat or charge his phone. At least Boyd took pity on him and offered Stiles a granola bar before their lacrosse practice, which, by the way, went just as horrible as the rest of Stiles’ day. It was cold and wet on the field and Stiles could feel every single muscle in his body protesting as Coach forced them to run another suicide. 

Really, Stiles wanted to puke up the granola bar. Scoring the least amount of points in their final drill meant he had to clean up and organize the equipment, which meant he was the last to hit the showers and the only person left in the locker room when he was done. Usually, his friends would wait up, but as it was Friday night most of them had plans. Scott, Kira, Allison, and Isaac were going on a double date to the movies while Boyd and Erica were heading to dinner. Jackson was usually the first out of the locker room, waiting for no one, so Stiles wasn’t too upset to find the room quieter than normal. He would just see if Derek was free for take out and a night in. He could really go for a nice, warm, werewolf snuggle right about now. 

He groaned as he grabbed his phone, the thing just as dead and useless as it was this morning. Apparently, the outlet he had plugged his charger into wasn’t working. Just his luck. He threw his phone back into his bag, throwing his red hoodie over his head as he prepared to leave. He heard the locker room door open and the sound of heavy footsteps approaching behind him.

“Aww, Scotty,” Stiles said as he closed his locker, “you didn’t have to wait for-”

His next words died in his throat as he turned, fingers tightening around the strap of his bag. Trevor was grinning at him maliciously, three of his asshole friends flanking him. Stiles quickly eyed the nearest exit, wondering if he would be able to outrun all four of them.

“Stiles,” Trevor said, Stiles’ eyes snapping back to him, “where’s your little buddy McCall to protect you?”

“He just had to grab something from his locker.” Stiles lied quickly, hoping it sounded more convincing than it felt.

“You sure?” Trevor asked, taking a step forward, brow cocking. “Could have sworn I saw him leave with his girlfriend.”

Stiles backed away slowly, his back pressing into the lockers. He thought of all of the supernatural creatures he had ever faced, knowing they were a hundred times scarier than Trevor and his friends. If he could face them then he could take on an asshole basketball player.

“What’s your deal?” Stiles asked, face hardening. “I’ve never done anything to you.”

“Oh Stiles,” Trevor said with a sigh, cracking his knuckles, “you were born and isn’t that enough?”

Stiles felt his fight or flight kicking in - mainly the flight part - and he quickly dropped his bag, bolting for the door. He didn’t make it far as he was tackled to the ground, before he was dragged back to the lockers, two pairs of strong hands pulling him by the ankles. His cry for help was cut off as he was slammed against the wall, a muscular arm pressed against his throat.

“There’s no one here, Stilinski,” Trevor sneered, “no one to hear you scream.”

Stiles bucked, kicked, and scratched at any inch of skin he could get his fingers on. He wasn’t going down without a fight if he could help it. The first blow was to his ribs, nearly knocking the wind out of him. He continued to scream, to _fight_ , but it only made the hits rain down on him harder. He choked back his tears, not wanting to give Trevor the satisfaction. He had thought they would have gotten bored after a few minutes, but Stiles realized this beating could put the one he had gotten from Gerard years ago to shame. 

When it finally ended Stiles was left to crumple to the floor, Trevor’s laugh echoing along the lockers, until it faded behind the swinging doors. Stiles felt his breath brush against the cold tile, eyes scrunched tightly shut, face burning in shame. The hits had hurt, but nothing shook him more than Trevor’s fingers running against the skin of his hips, dipping just below the waistband of his boxers. 

_“_ _Maybe next time we can see what that’s all about_. _”_

The hands had, thankfully, been withdrawn before they moved any lower, but Stiles could still feel them and it made bile rise in the back of his throat. He shoved it back down, but he couldn’t stop the sob rippling through his chest, hot tears running down his cheeks. There had been four of them. How could he have stopped four of them? He was just one person. Just human. Just Stiles. He was always better at facing the supernatural monsters. Never the human ones.

Stiles wasn’t sure how long he had laid on the floor, curled into a tight ball. He’d figured out nothing had been broken, but his body ached deeply and he could picture the bruises forming on his skin. He couldn’t imagine how angry Derek would be when he saw him, eyes flashing red, teeth barred in a snarl. Stiles’ only comfort was knowing that Trevor probably wouldn’t be walking around too much longer once his alpha - and the rest of the pack for that matter - laid hands on him. 

He slowly picked himself up off the floor, trying to wipe the rest of his tears away. He shuffled out into the parking lot, noticing all of the cars except for his Jeep and one other vehicle were gone. He dumped his bag in the seat, leaning against the Jeep to catch his breath. He wanted to tell himself that he was stronger than this, that he would survive just like he had everything else. He had helped take on an alpha pack, outsmarted an evil spirit, and countless other things. He could survive this too.

He could...he could…

“Mr. Stilinski.”

Stiles nearly jumped out of his skin at the voice. He turned, his heart dropping into his stomach when he realized who was looking at him with a wide smile on their face, like they didn’t notice his most recent bruises.

“Hey, Ms. Adder,” Stiles said as he winced, rubbing the back of his neck, “now really isn’t a great time. Can I just get the book from you on Monday?”

Ms. Adder’s smile only melted into a smirk, her arms crossing over her chest. “Stiles, I believe we can both drop the pretenses now.”

Stiles watched as her eyes glowed black for a moment. He barely had time to formulate a plan as the words, “Oh fuck” slipped from his mouth before his world went black.

-

Stiles has had bad days before, but this certainly qualified as _worse days_. His head was pounding, vision swimming as he felt cold, hard ground beneath him. There was something metallic clamped tightly around his wrist and as he moved he could hear the clink of chains. So much for not being kidnapped. He let out an annoyed huff of air as he slowly blinked his eyes open, trying to adjust to the fading light around him. As he turned his head his heart jumped into his throat and he quickly back peddled until he hit a wall, his chest heaving from the effort. Lying right next to him was Jaqueline Adder’s very dead body. Her empty eyes were angled in his direction, skin unbelievably pale, bugs pouring through her cracked and gaping lips. The smell hit Stiles all at once and he quickly turned, puking what little was left in his stomach. She looked like she had been dead for a while, but that seemed impossible because Stiles had seen her every day at school for the past few weeks! He quickly looked at his fingers, counting them. It seemed too good to be true for this horrible event to all be just a nightmare. 

“You’re not dreaming, Stiles.”

Stiles jumped, the chains pulling at his wrist uncomfortably, as he turned to see a new figure standing in the shadows. Stiles had to do a double take as Ms. Adder - or maybe she had an evil twin? - casually strolled over to where he was sitting. Stiles climbed to his feet, his fingers gripping the wall behind him as she drew closer.

“Who the fuck are you?” Stiles asked as he threw the dead body another glance. This was all just way too weird and Stiles had seen plenty of weird things before.

Ms. Adder simply smiled. “My kind don’t really have a name, we just are.” She said, stopping just in front of him. 

“You’re supernatural?” Stiles asked, tilting his head to the side. He had remembered seeing her eyes flashing black for a moment. Human eyes didn’t do that. When she nodded her head Stiles just shook his. “I don’t understand, how-”

“How could the little werewolves not smell me?” She asked, cutting him off like she knew what he was about to say. “That would be one of the lovely perks of what I am.”

“And that is?” Stiles asked. She had said they didn’t have a name, but she couldn’t be nothing. 

“A shapeshifter in its purest form.” She responded.

Stiles felt his eyes grow wide as he watched her entire body change, like Mystique from the X-Men. She shot up in height, her hair growing shorter, grey, wrinkles crinkling around her eyes. She was now an older gentleman, but only for a moment before winking and transforming again. She became a young girl, a teenage boy, what looked like a set of three siblings, and countless other forms before returning to what was, presumably, his English teacher. Stiles felt his stomach twisting uncomfortably, realizing the real Jaqueline had probably never set foot into Beacon Hills High. 

“Why?” He asked as he looked down at the body again. He knew in the back of his mind that he was in very real danger and wondered if his pack, if Derek, had noticed his absence yet.

“There have been stories,” The shapeshifter began, “rumors of the things that lived in Beacon Hills, protecting this town. I’m a simple girl, I find a human who tickles my fancy and I consume them.”

Stiles could only imagine how many other faces she possessed, how many lives she had torn apart with her hunger. 

“The last Hale Alpha.” She said as she licked her lips. “A True Alpha. A banshee. A kitsune. A pack of betas.”

Stiles growled, his hands clenching in tight fists. Her files were beginning to make sense. She was taking notes on each person so she knew exactly whose lives she would be stealing. Who she could be consuming.

“How utterly delicious does that sound?” The shapeshifter asked with a laugh that sent a shiver down Stiles’ spine. “Think of the power I could possess from the Alpha’s alone.”

“But why kill Ms. Adder?” Stiles gestured towards the body, glaring at the shapeshifter. “Why not just take on the pack as soon as you get here?”

The shapeshifter rolled her eyes as she moved closer to the body. She bent down, brushing a strand of blond hair off of the real Jaqueline’s face. “Because, Stiles, I may be able to transform at will, but I am limited by my human host. I can’t very well fight an entire pack of supernaturals as a little old grandma, now can I?”

Stiles felt the gears turning in his brain. “That’s why the pack thought you were human.” He whispered more to himself than to her, but he could see a grin curling against her lips. “Whatever you do doesn’t just give you their appearance. It hides your scent, your true nature, makes you human.”

“Very good.” The shapeshifter said as she took a step towards him. “It gives me all of their memories too. I essentially become that person. It’s quite fun.”

“Killing innocent people isn’t fun.” Stiles responded through gritted teeth. 

The shapeshifter just shrugged her shoulders. “I usually like to take my time and really get to know my targets, but you have, unfortunately forced my hand a little bit, Stiles.”

Stiles couldn’t help the small smirk that filled his face. “I didn’t trust you the moment I set eyes on you.”

“Yes,” The shapeshifter growled, “annoying, really. I was hoping to have some fun with the Hale Alpha, given this breathing taking form and all.” She said as she indicated to her body. “But, he seemed to have his heart set on someone else.”

Stiles felt his jaw tighten. Derek had been abused and taken advantage of by far too many people in his life. People only saw him as a tool to gain what they wanted most and Stiles hated that with every fiber of his being. Derek was the bravest, softest, caring and most wonderful person Stiles had ever met. He had been through so much, but still found the strength to carry on. He had lost his family, but found a new one. He had built a pack and learned to trust again. He protected fiercely and tried his best to make their lives safe and happy. Stiles would make sure no one would _ever_ use Derek like Kate had. Like Jennifer had. Ever again. 

“You don’t get to touch Derek Hale.” Stiles forced through gritted teeth. 

The shapeshifter’s laugh now was darker, more hollow. “I was curious, when I found you both in the store, and somehow I could tell how much you cared for him.” She grew closer to Stiles, fingers brushing along his shoulders, tracing his collarbone. “I knew I had gotten under your skin with my date comment, but it wasn’t until I walked into that room Monday morning and could smell him all over you.”

Stiles remembered. She had paused mid-sentence, sending him the most hateful look she could have mustered. At the time he hadn’t realized what he could have done to deserve it, but now it was clear as day. All of the betas and Scott had repeatedly told him how much he smelled like Derek, clearing stating they belonged to each other. It was something the shapeshifter had not been expecting and clearly had caught her off guard. And derailed her entire plan, Stiles thought smugly. 

“I can still have my fun, though,” and now her grin was positively wicked, “I just need a change.”

Stiles felt all of the color drain from his face, his breath hitching in his throat. He pressed himself completely into the wall he was chained to, eyes darting around for something, anything that could help him. He had no idea whether the pack knew he was missing or not. He imagined Scott and the others sitting in a movie, munching on popcorn, Boyd and Erica laughing over dinner, Jackson and Lydia cuddling on the couch together. What made his heart clench the most was picturing Derek sitting on his couch, a book held in his hand, a hot cup of tea resting against the table. What if they never knew what happened to him…

“I’m sorry, Stiles” The shapeshifter said as she grabbed his arm roughly, before pulling him forward, “I really didn’t want to consume you.”

“Wait!” Stiles cried as he tried to tug free, but the chains made it hard to escape. “D-don’t do this!”

“I’ll take good care of Derek.” She said with a feral smile before pulling back the sleeve of his hoodie. 

He watched as her teeth elongated, growing sharper and deadly as her eyes flashed black. He only had time to squeak out one more protest before she bit down, hard, on the inside of his arm. Stiles screamed as his body began to burn intensely, like his blood had become liquid magma in his veins. He thrashed and pulled, but she did not waver as her grip on his arm tightened. He could feel his body sagging, a sharpness reverberating in his skull, like she was literally sucking the life out of him. He squeezed his eyes closed, just wanting it to end, to end, oh god just let it fucking end!

The shapeshifter gasped loudly, her teeth retracting as she pulled away from Stiles, coughing and spluttering. Stiles felt his body crash to the ground, the burning slowly fading as he inhaled deeply, taking oxygen into his lungs. He felt lightheaded and dizzy, like he had lost a lot of blood, his brain moving sluggishly as he tried to open his eyes. The shapeshifter was still coughing and only her terrifying snarl gave him enough strength to look at her. She was still Ms. Adder, but her teeth were long, eyes black, and mouth covered in blood.

“Something,” she wheezed, like it pained her to breath, “something dark has tainted you.”

Stiles felt himself laughing as his hand clamped down on the bleeding bite mark. “Nogitsune.” He managed to say after a moment, his head spinning. “Void.”

The shapeshifter spat, positively seething with anger. “Yes, I can taste that now.”

“Looks like you’ll need to revert to Plan B.” Stiles said as he leaned his head against the wall, the weight of it almost too much to hold up.

The shapeshifter growled, before cracking her neck, standing up straight in front of him. “I may need to cut things short, but I got enough of you to pull this off.”

Stiles’ eyes snapped open, catching her smirk before she began to transform. He knew, _he knew_ , who that was in front of him, but he couldn’t stop the terrified cry from leaving his lips, backing against the wall as hard as he could. It was like looking into a mirror and seeing the dark and horrible image of Void. He’d had several nightmares just like this and by the look on - not his face, the shapeshifter, _it was the shapeshifter’s_ \- face that she knew exactly where his mind had gone.

“You’ve seen this before.” The shapeshifter said in his voice, with his smirk, dressed in his hoodie. “And that scares you.”

“It scares you too.” Stiles said, jaw trembling. 

It wasn’t Void. It wasn’t Void. _It wasn’t Void_.

The shapeshifter cocked _his_ head to the side before his appearance melted back into his dead English teacher. Stiles took in a deep breath, his panicked mind calming for a fraction of a second. It helped to not look at the thing that had haunted him for nearly a year.

“I can’t hold your form for long since I did not consume all of you.” She sneered, her teeth sharpening for a moment.

Well, at least _some_ good came out of the whole possession ordeal. He wasn’t about to have his entire self sucked out by the shapeshifter, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t dispose of him in other ways. 

“Too salty?” He asked, because, honestly, when had near death experiences stopped him from being a little shit before?

“The Nogitsune has poisoned you.” The shapeshifter spat. “Although, I will say, it has made you much more interesting than I thought you would be.”

Stiles eyed her wearily as she strolled forward, grasping his chin in her hands tightly.

“What’s it like being the weak link in the Hale-McCall pack?” She asked, lips curling up wickedly. “Not the only human, but at least Allison Argent can shoot, right? What do you do, Stiles?”

Stiles jerked his chin out of her grasp, amber eyes narrowing. 

“Lose your mind to evil spirits?” She continued, grin widening. “Get in the way of the bigger, stronger members of your pack?” Her fingers reached out, tracing a bruise that had begun to form under his right eye. “Get beat up by bigger, stronger humans on the basketball team?”

Stiles averted his gaze. He had been so full of adrenaline from the past few minutes, his mind focused on the current danger, that he had nearly forgotten what had happened to him just hours ago. Nearly. Now he could feel the bruises along his body, the pain in his ribs, remembering Trevor’s fingers tracing along the skin at his waist. 

He wasn’t weak.

He couldn’t fight like the others could, but it never stopped him from standing with them in the face of danger. He was smart. He could make plans and figure things out before anyone else could see the whole picture. Derek had said he was the glue holding them all together and Stiles believed him. He had worked so hard to fight those doubts that had always plagued his mind, making him think he didn’t belong. But he did. He was pack. 

“You know,” Stiles said as he looked back up at her, “the Nogitsune was a lot better at the whole making me feel terrible about myself thing than you are.”

“Worth a shot, right?” She asked with a quip of her eyebrow. “But, I should be going now,” she said as she straightened up, “I have a few things to take care of.”

She started for the open door of whatever abandoned warehouse he was in before pausing to turn and look at him.

“Oh, by the way,” She said, holding up what looked like his phone, “don’t expect your pack to come looking for you. I made sure they knew exactly where you were.” She winked before she transformed into him, a smile still plastered along the shapeshifter’s face. “See you around, Stiles.”

Stiles watched as his doppleganger threw him a small wave before closing the door, leaving him in the darkness with a rotting corpse. He slowly slid down the wall, knees coming up to his chest, head falling into his hands. Yeah, this was definitely one of his _worst days_.

-

Stiles had figured he’d fallen asleep at some point, his body too exhausted to do anything else. He had screamed for help for a few hours before giving up, his voice hoarse from the effort. He realized the only food he had eaten all day was the granola bar Boyd had given him, which he had promptly thrown up upon smelling the dead body of his teacher. His stomach was twisting uncomfortably and his mouth was dry. He couldn’t tell if his pounding headache came from the dehydration, lack of food, little sleep, or just the general awfulness of this whole situation. He wondered how long it would take the pack to notice that something was off about him - well, not _him_ , but shapeshifter him - or if they would even notice at all.

He’d like to think Derek or even Scott knew him enough to see past the facade, but Stiles had been wrong before. 

It was about midday when the shapeshifter returned - in Ms. Adder’s form thank goodness - smiling wickedly as always.

“Your father took us out for breakfast,” she said as a way of greeting, “so very nice of him.”

Stiles growled, trying to get to his feet, but his body was just too weak to stand. He hated the idea of this monster being anywhere near his father. 

“Too bad he doesn’t know it’s too late for his son.” She said as she reached down and began to unchain him.

“What are you doing?” Stiles asked, his heart immediately jumping into his throat. He knew she wasn’t going to consume any more of him, but that just left every other possible way to be disposed of on the table.

“Unburdening myself of you.” She replied simply as she gripped his arm tightly, jerking him to his feet with a small yelp of pain. “I have much bigger fish, or shall I say, wolves to fry.”

“Leave them be!” Stiles snarled, but he was already sagging forward, like he couldn’t carry his own weight.

The shapeshifter said nothing as she dragged him out of the warehouse and into the trunk of her car. Stiles knew he should have stayed awake, tried to figure a way out, but he was so unbelievably tired. He could feel his body giving into the exhaustion, passing out every few minutes. It wasn’t until the car came to a complete stop and he lurched forward that he was now fully awake. He could feel sweat dripping down his forehead, his stomach cramping uncomfortable, his body still too heavy, too weak to move. The faded light of the late afternoon blinded him as the trunk was thrown open.

“Final stop.” The shapeshifter sang as she pulled him from the trunk.

It was somewhere in the preserve, off the beaten path. Stiles’ mind immediately went to all of the terrible things she could do to him out here where no one would find him. He had read dozens of missing persons cases that dealt with the woods and now he would just be another number. She didn’t drag him too far before dumping him into a nice little ditch, wiping her hands on her jeans.

“Maybe if you’re lucky a wild animal will put you out of your misery before the dehydration and starvation do.” She hummed as she cocked her head to the side, watching Stiles curiously.

Stiles could feel the dirt brush into his nose as he inhaled deeply, using whatever strength he still had to roll himself over on his back. Against his better judgement he said, “So, you’re not going to kill me yourself?”

The shapeshifter just laughed. “Too much work when I have other things to do.” She answered simply before turning away, leaving him to die in the middle of the woods.

-

Derek paced the large area of his loft, chewing on his bottom lip in worry. He knew he didn’t have anything to worry about, but somehow, he could still feel like something was _off_. Just because he and Stiles were now dating, didn’t mean he could monopolize all of Stiles’ time, but it was weird he hadn’t seen the boy since Thursday evening. Even more weirder was that Stiles had gone quiet on the texting front. Sure, his phone had died for most of Friday, but when he eventually got the “all good” text from Stiles he expected the boy to keep talking, but he just…

Didn’t.

It was almost enough for Derek to go over and really check to make sure he was okay before Stiles had texted that he wasn’t feeling well and just needed to sleep. He begrudgingly accepted it, despite his inner wolf telling him to investigate anyway. The rest of the pack didn’t seem as concerned as they started filing into the loft for their usual Saturday hangout, baring Allison who was at a doctor’s appointment. It wasn’t until everyone had arrived and there was still no sign of Stiles that he really started to worry.

“Has anyone seen Stiles since Friday after practice?” Derek asked, trying not to sound desperate.

“Coach made him clean up all of the equipment, “ Isaac supplied with a shrug of his shoulders, “but he told us not to wait up.”

“He was just texting me this morning.” Scott said with a small frown and Derek could detect the slightest uptick in his heart. “He had breakfast with his dad, so maybe he’s just a bit behind?”

Derek gritted his teeth, trying to shove that feeling of _something being wrong_ away as he tried to take a calming breath. Stiles could handle himself. Yeah, he was clumsy and more danger prone than most, but he was smart and wouldn’t seek out trouble without some sort of back up. It wasn’t until his phone rang, Stiles’ name popping up on the screen did he release a breath of relief. He soon regretted that as Stiles’ terrified voice cried out over the receiver.

“D-Derek?”

“Stiles?” Derek asked, body immediately tensing, fangs dropping as his eyes flashed red. “Are you okay?”

The rest of the pack shot to their feet, moving closer to Derek to hear better. Stiles broke off into a sob and Derek felt his heart clenching.

“S-something is here with me.” He finally managed to say. “God,” his voice dropped to a whisper, “it’s so dark and I can’t move my leg.”

“Where are you?” Derek asked, trying his best to control his shift, but he could feel his claws popping one by one at Stiles’ pained whimpers.

“I don’t know.” Stiles whined. “Some warehouse? I can hear a train and it smells like fish.”

“That’s good.” Derek said gently, eyes closing, “Stiles, I know where you are, hang on.”

“Hurry.” Stiles managed to get out before he broke off into another sob. “I think- fuck, fuck, fuck!”

“Stiles!” Derek yelled before the line went dead. He was holding the phone so tightly in his hand he could hear it starting to break. He took another few breaths to calm himself before facing the rest of the pack. “Stiles is in trouble.”

“Where is he?” Scott asked, jaw set in anger, eyes glowing read.

“Old fishing warehouse on the other side of town.” Derek growled out before he shoved past the pack, grabbing his keys and moving towards the door, not waiting for anyone else to follow. Stiles was going to be okay. Stiles was going to be okay. Stiles was going to be okay.

 _Stiles was going to be okay_.

Because if he wasn’t then Derek knew there would be hell to pay.

-

Stiles closed his eyes, fingers digging into the cold ground beneath him. He had counted, in his head, every single second until he had hit the ten minute mark. That’s all he was giving himself. 

Ten minutes. 

He had ten minutes to get his fucking shit together and pull himself to his feet no matter how much he didn’t want to. And he really didn’t want to. Actually, he wasn’t sure if his body was even going to let him move, but Stiles would be damn if he let himself die out in the middle of the woods. So at the ten minute mark, with the most herculean effort in the history of the world, Stiles pushed himself off of the ground, moving to a sitting position. He could feel his head swimming from the effort alone, but he took several breaths to steady himself. He had half a mind to grab a handful of leaves to chew on to try and calm his stomach, but his fingers didn’t move from their tight grip into the dirt. He counted down another five minutes before he slowly got to his feet. He stumbled forward, using the nearest tree to keep him up right.

_Jesus fuck what did she do to me?_

He wondered if her self sucking powers would wear off or if he was going to be stuck like this forever. He knew it probably didn’t help that his last meal was sometime Thursday evening and he’d been beaten up by a bunch of assholes almost less than twenty four hours ago. He tried not to think about that now, knowing the pack was going to be in trouble if he didn’t tell them the truth. 

“Okay, Stiles,” he breathed, his full weight still sagging against the tree, “just one foot in front of the other.”

Nevermind he had absolutely no idea where he was in the preserve and there was the very real chance he was going the wrong way, getting himself further lost, he somehow spotted the shapeshifter’s footprints in the soft mud. He gave himself another two minutes before pushing off of the tree and moving forward. He made it exactly seven steps before falling to his knees. He tried a few more times, but was only met with the same result. He would have been more angry with himself, but realizing what his body had been through in the past several hours was enough to remind him that he was human. It was a miracle he hadn’t collapsed for good yet. 

“Can’t walk,” he murmured, “then crawl.”

So he began to crawl, jeans wet from the dew and mud on the ground, but Stiles couldn’t care less as he continued forward. His palms felt raw and bloody as they skimmed over sharp rocks and roots, but the cool breeze and fresh smell of pine was a small reminder that he was still alive. He could still make it. He didn’t know how long he was crawling before his hand brushed against the hard blacktop that meant he had found the road. With a small whimper he collapsed onto it. He never thought he’d be so excited to breathe in the smell of oil and asphalt. 

_Five minutes_

He had five minutes to rest before he would start his trek down the road. Maybe, if he was lucky a car would pass by, but Stiles wasn’t holding out considering how his last few days had gone. He had just passed the three minute mark when he heard it. The rumbling sound of a car moving down the road and Stiles wondered if the universe was offering him some sort of good karma for the hell he had just been put through. He closed his eyes, trying to push himself up, but his head began to spin and he fell backwards into the ditch. The ringing in his ears was just loud enough that he hadn’t heard the car screech to the side, but the voice that called out for him all, but made his heart stop.

“Stiles! Oh my god, Stiles!”

He couldn’t quite pin it, but he recognized it, and that made tears spring to his eyes as soft hands reached out, gently grabbing his shoulders to steady him. The voice was still calling his name, worried, but firm. Once his vision stopped swimming he locked eyes with dark browns that could only belong to Allison Argent (he would know Scott had written poems about them before).

“Allison?” He mumbled as his hands gripped her wrist, making sure that she was solid, that she was real.

She didn’t hesitate as she threw one of his arms around her shoulder, pulling him to his feet. He stumbled into her side, but she was surprisingly very strong, only wavering slightly from the impact as she half carried him to her car.

“I was at the doctor’s when Isaac texted me that you were in trouble at a warehouse.” Allison explained as she managed to get the passenger side door open, helping him ease down onto the seat. “As soon as my appointment was over I was heading to the address Scott had sent.” Her eyes filled with concern as she took a closer look at his face.

“Warehouse?” Stiles asked, his brain felt heavy and slow, not understanding what she was saying. Clearly he wasn’t at a warehouse.

“How did you get here?” She asked. “Are the others okay? Did you escape?”

Stiles shook his head, trying to clear the fog. How did the pack know he was in trouble? The shapeshifter had gone through great lengths to make sure…

“The shapeshifter.” Stiles whispered, causing Allison to cock and eyebrow. “Allison, our English teacher, she’s a shapeshifter!”

“What?”

“Ms. Adder, she’s not who she says she is,” Stiles began, the horrible image of their dead teacher running through his mind, “in fact, I don’t think the real Ms. Adder ever stepped foot in Beacon High.”

He heard Allison inhale sharply, “Then you weren’t the one who called. It was the shapeshifter pretending to be you.” She said, horrified.

Stiles opened his mouth to ask how she would know that, but Allison may have been the only other person besides himself, and Lydia, that had actually read the Bestiary and was familiar with a lot of the supernatural creatures out there. While Lydia was mostly human, Allison was _actually_ human and while yes, she could be pretty handy with a bow and arrow, she would have to gain her advantages by knowing everything about their adversaries.

“We need to get you to a hospital.” Allison stated when Stiles had remained silent for too long.

“No!” Stiles replied, panicked. If Allison was behind the rest of the pack then there was a very good chance the shapeshifter had them right where she wanted them. There was no telling when she would suck their lives out or how long it would take before she consumed all of them. “There’s no time!”

“Stiles,” Allison argued, “you’re dehydrated and probably haven’t had food in a long while, not to mention whatever she had to do to you to take your form.” She said as she indicated to what were probably the very dark bruises forming across his face.

“I-” Stiles stopped himself, knowing full and well that those bruises were not from the shapeshifter, but he really didn’t have time to explain that right now. He huffed in frustration, “Look, we don’t have time to detour to the hospital. When was the last time you heard from anyone in the pack?”

He watched as Allison pulled out her phone, frowning slightly. “Isaac was supposed to let me know when they had arrived, but that was over an hour ago.”

“Then we _definitely_ don’t have time to head back into town.” Stiles said. “Do you have your bow?”

“Of course.” Allison said immediately, arms crossing over her chest like it was a silly question.

“Then we’re going to that warehouse.” Stiles said, mirroring her movements.

He knew he was exhausted, dehydrated, and probably a few short minutes away from passing out for the next several hours, but his friends, his pack - _Derek_ \- were in danger and Stiles would not sit by and let something happen to them. Allison looked like she wanted to argue and Stiles knew that if it came down to it she would overpower him instantly. Instead she just gritted her teeth, turning away from him, moving towards the trunk of her car. He heard it swing open, the sound of plastic rumbling loudly, before she slammed the trunk shut, moving back around to shove a bottle of water and a bag of beef jerky into his arms.

“Eat and drink slowly.” She instructed with a pointed look that could rival Melissa before she turned to get behind the wheel. 

Stiles looked down at the items she had given him, hands shaking as he reached for the cap on the bottle. “How-”

“Werewolf boyfriends.” Allison said with a small smile as she started up the car, pulling it back out onto the road. “They’re always hungry, so I learned to keep snacks packed away just in case.”

“Thank you.” Stiles managed to get out as he brought the bottle to his lips. 

He was glad she had reminded him to take it slow because he wanted to devour the entire bottle and bag of jerky in seconds, but he knew it would have made him sick. They sat in silence for a few moments as Stiles slowly felt a little bit of life return as he ate and drank. He could see Allison’s eyes darting over to him every few minutes and he knew she was waiting until he was ready to ask what the hell had happened to him. He couldn’t see his face, but he knew his clothes were muddy from his trek across the ground and there was a giant blood stain on his hoodie sleeve where the shapeshifter had bitten down on his arm. He probably looked like he had just walked off the set of a horror movie as the final girl. When he felt ready enough to speak he recounted his last couple of hours with the shapeshifter, what she had been planning, and how she was able to change forms.

Allison just gripped the steering wheel tightly, lips pressed firmly together, “But she didn’t kill you?”

“Something about being tainted by the Nogitsune made it difficult or unpleasant for her to consume me completely.” Stiles muttered, rubbing at the spot on his arm unconsciously. He could remember the searing hot pain that flowed through his veins.

“That’s something.” Allison conceded after a moment. 

If there was one other person that had really suffered, physically, from the whole Void debacle then it was Allison. Considering she had almost died when the creature had taken over the Oni, well, Stiles was just glad she never blamed him for it. While it hadn’t been him, it was still his face and his voice commanding them and that wasn’t easy to erase.

“Did that cause the bruises?” She asked, her eyes widening as she looked at him again.

“No, she didn’t do that.” Stiles said before he could stop himself. It took him a moment to realize what he had said as Allison cocked her eyebrow in confusion, lips parting with her next question.

“But, you didn’t look like that at school on Friday, what happened?” She asked.

“I - it’s - nothing, it’s nothing.” Stiles stammered out. He knew he probably could have lied and said he fell or it happened when he was crawling his way towards the road, but somehow he knew that she probably would have caught it instantly.

“Stiles,” she said, taking his hand, giving it a light squeeze, “it’s okay, you can tell me.”

Stiles didn’t know if it was the gentle touch his body had been craving after all of the abuse or the sincerity in Allison’s voice that made him finally cave.

“Trevor McCallister.” Stiles blurted out, his cheeks burning with the shame he had been carrying around the past few months. “Ever since I came out he’s targeted me while no one else is around.”

“ _What_?” Allison snarled and for a moment Stiles wondered if she was human after all.

“Just small shit.” Stiles continued, talking fast, “Like shoving me into lockers and stuff, but it wasn’t until Scott caught him that it took a turn for the worst.”

Allison’s eyes were a mix of horror and anger as she looked over the bruises again, noticing that they trailed down his neck and under his hoodie. “Stiles…”

“I think he was angry, so after practice Friday he and three of his friends cornered me in the locker room and-” He cut off, biting down on his lip because he could suddenly feel bile rising in the back of his throat.

“He didn’t…” Allison asked in a voice barely above a whisper.

Stiles shook his head, not trusting his voice in that moment. He felt a shiver go down his spine as the feel of Trevor’s rough fingers ghosted across his waist. It took him a moment to realize he was gripping Allison’s wrist with all of his strength, but she didn’t say anything as he released her.

 _“_ _Maybe next time we can see what that’s all about_. _”_

“There will never be a next time.” Allison bit out, jaw trembling. “Stiles,” she murmured, some of her anger fading as she looked at him, “why didn’t you tell us? We could have done something to help.”

“Because I don’t need the pack to do everything for me!” Stiles shot back hotly. “Just because I’m the token human doesn’t mean I need saving all of the time! I should have been able to handle Trevor on my own!”

“You think being human makes you weak?” Allison asked sharply.

“Of course not.” Stiles replied, deflating in his seat. “I just - you all have dealt with so much helping me through the Void possession, I didn’t want to burden you anymore.”

“Helping your pack, protecting them, is never a burden, Stiles.” Allison said kindly. “If it were Derek or Scott or anyone else being bullied wouldn’t you want to know? Wouldn’t you want to do something to stop it?”

Of course Stiles would. He would have made sure that anyone, _anyone_ that threatened or hurt his friends would pay because his friends deserved all of the happiness in the world. The look on his face must have been enough for Allison to determine that he agreed with her. 

“Then why don’t you allow yourself the same kindness?” She asked.

Stiles let his gaze wander over to her for a moment. He always thought Allison was sweet, kind, strong, and smart, but for the first time he could see why Scott, and now Isaac, had fallen so hard for her. He was lucky to have her as a friend and he made a mental note to find time to hang out with her more. They were Team Human after all and the humans needed to stick together.

“You’re way too good for Scott and Isaac.” He finally said, offering her a half smile, one she returned instantly.

“Derek’s going to kill Trevor,” Allison said, “and I for one can’t wait to see that.”

“Trevor’s going to have to wait,” Stiles said as Allison pulled to a stop in front of the warehouse, the Camaro and a few other cars already parked outside, “we have something else to take care of first.”

-

Derek felt a dull ache in the back of his head as he slowly blinked his eyes open, trying to adjust to darkness around him. He could feel his arms burn and as he tried to move them, relieve the pain, when he realised they were chained above his head. He groaned softly, before inhaling, his lungs feeling like they were on fire from the effort. All he could remember was hearing Stiles’ terrified call when he had entered the building before a thick, dense smoke, laced with wolfsbane no doubt, choked him and the others into unconsciousness.

“Hey, Sourwolf,” a familiar voice said right in front of him, “glad you’re finally awake.”

Derek’s eyes snapped open and he recoiled when he saw Stiles’ smirking facing looking right at him. For one, terrible moment Derek felt his heart dropping into his stomach, his mind only filling with one word. 

_Void_.

That thing had returned and it had Stiles again. Derek snarled, his eyes flashing red, teeth bared as he snapped at the creature before him. It couldn’t be Stiles. It couldn’t be. They had nearly lost him once and Derek had vowed he would never let that happen to Stiles again. 

Stiles’ grin only grew wider. “I nearly forgot, you’ve all seen this before.” He said, turning to the room at large. 

Derek noticed the entirety of the pack was chained up in similar fashion around the large room. Lydia was on his left and Scott was to his right.

“Stiles,” Scott whined, and Derek could hear the pain in his voice, and he knew that Scott was thinking the same, “you can’t be Stiles…”

“Can’t I?” Stiles asked, quipping an eyebrow, before his face fell into a grimace, like he was in pain. He reached an arm across his stomach, gripping his shirt tightly. “Unfortunately, you’re right, but the looks on all of your faces was worth it.”

Derek and Scott exchanged a quick glance before Stiles began to transform. Derek watched with wide eyes as he morphed into the smiling shape of Ms. Adder, the English teacher Stiles had been so set on being evil. The one Derek had thought was completely human. He heard an intake of breath from everyone else in the room, all of them probably realizing how right Stiles was. Ms. Adder held out her hands, giving them all a mock bow.

“Ta da!” She said, her smile all teeth. 

“A shapeshifter,” Lydia said through tight lips, “in its purest form.”

“Well,” The shapeshifter said as she flipped her hair over her shoulder, “at least _one_ of you does their homework. No surprise that it’s Lydia Martin.” 

“Where is Stiles?” Derek growled. He didn’t see him in the room, couldn’t hear his heartbeat, and Derek had to fight that ever growing panic that something had happened to Stiles. Something he couldn’t fix.

The shapeshifter’s grin just grew wider as she looked at Derek. She reached out, stroking her fingers down Derek’s chest, causing him to jerk back out of her touch. She scowled slightly, turning on her heel and pacing in front of her captive audience. “Lydia, would you like to share with the class how a shapeshifter obtains its many forms?”

“A shapeshifter can become anyone with one bite, sucking the person’s self until they have been consumed.” Lydia recited like she was reading from a book.

The shapeshifter turned her gaze back to Derek and for a moment she melted back into Stiles, just long enough to wink. 

“No!” Scott yelled as Derek’s eyes widened in horror.

The shapeshifter could change into Stiles, which meant…

No.

No, Stiles couldn’t be gone. He couldn’t be ripped from Derek right when they had finally found each other. Derek wouldn’t believe it because he _couldn’t_ believe it. Because if Stiles was gone, really and truly gone, then Derek didn’t know if he could survive.

“I’m going to kill you.” Derek said darkly, eyes a blazing hot red as he pulled at his chains, fangs bared with the intent to rip, tear, and kill.

The shapeshifter breathed deeply, like she was deriving some sick pleasure, “God, I can’t wait to consume you Derek Hale, you’re going to taste so good.”

Derek snarled, snapping at her as she got close. He watched as her eyes became black, her own teeth lengthening as her fingers curled around the edge of his shirt, lifting it. Derek tried to move out of her touch, but her fingers gripped his hip, pulling him closer, her teeth brushing against his skin.

“Why can’t you hold Stiles’ form?” Lydia asked, causing the shapeshifter to pause. 

Derek froze as she pulled back, releasing his shirt, turning to look at Lydia, eyes still black and teeth still incredibly long and sharp.

“What did you say?”

“You looked like you were in pain when you were Stiles,” Lydia continued, eyes narrowed, like she was studying something, “like you couldn’t keep it, but yet you have no trouble being our English teacher.”

“Ever the observant one, Miss Martin, aren’t we?” The shapeshifter replied, sounding annoyed. “Yes, I can only be your precious Stiles Stilinski for so long because I did not get to consume all of him.”  
  
They all exchanged a quick glance and Derek felt something like hope blooming in his chest.

“You can thank the Nogitsune for that,” The shapeshifter continued, still acting put out that Lydia had stopped her from feasting, “but, I wouldn’t get your hopes up.” She said as she looked at Derek, fingers reaching to ghost across his cheek. “I left him in the woods to die alone and with no pack to save him, well, let’s hope dear old dad finds his bones someday.”

Derek wasn’t the only one to snarl at her words. There was a chorus of angry howls from the wolves in the room, eyes glowing as they fought against their bonds. 

“You should have seen him when I picked him up from the school,” she purred, “after what those big, strong boys from the basketball team did I barely had to lift a finger to get Stiles here.”

“What are you talking about?” Derek asked, his anger burning white and hot in his veins.

“Trevor McCallister.” Scott spat. “What did he do to Stiles?”

“Funny,” the shapeshifter said as she looked around at the pack, “how you all can fight and defend the town from evil, and yet, you can’t stop one of your own from being beaten up by a school bully.”

Derek could feel his teeth grinding together, hands balling into a tight fist, claws digging into the soft skin of his palms. Why hadn’t Stiles said anything? His heart ached knowing how much Stiles already suffered on the supernatural end of things, but now someone dared hurt him for no other reason than to be an asshole? Derek was going to make sure that this Trevor kid never saw the light of day.

“If a wild animal doesn’t finish Stiles off, maybe Trevor can.” The shapeshifter said with a grin, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth. “Afterall, he did say, _Maybe next time we can see what that’s all about_ _.”_ She recited in a low voice as she ran her fingers against the skin of Derek’s waist. 

Derek was practically vibrating with fury. He was going to rip Trevor piece by fucking piece, slowly, painfully, for even thinking about touching Stiles. There would be no mercy.

“I can feel your anger,” the shapeshifter said in delight, “and it’s going to taste so fucking good. I’ll have to thank that pathetically weak human for pulling so much emotion out of you.”

She ripped Derek’s shirt up, thumb rubbing over the area she wanted to sink her teeth into. She moved, jaw unhinging, fangs sinking in….

“Thank me for this, bitch!” Stiles yelled as he swung a large, metal pipe, knocking the shapeshifter away from Derek.

“Stiles!” Derek cried, heart bursting from his chest as his eyes took in the bruised, bloodied, half dead, but still beautifully alive human just in front of him. 

Stiles turned, grinning as he caught sight of his boyfriend. “Hey Sourwolf, I thought you might need saving.”

“I should have finished you myself.” The shapeshifter seethed as she got to her feet, lunging right for Stiles.

Stiles barely had time to turn and defend himself when an arrow came soaring through the air, pinning the shapeshifter right in the chest, making her fall to the floor. 

Allison stepped into view, moving to stand next to Stiles, “Humans aren’t weak and we’re certainly not pathetic.” She said as she looked down at the shapeshifter.

Black blood oozed from the wound, slipping through the cracked lips of the shapeshifter as she opened her mouth to scream. She began to writhe on the floor, her body rapidly changing forms, all of her stolen lives, flashing before their eyes. For a moment Stiles - her Stiles - was looking up at them, hand reaching in the space between them, last words dying on black stained lips before the creature exploded into dust. 

“Don’t mess with Team Human.” Allison said as she threw Stiles a smile.

“Hell yeah.” Stiles said as he raised his hand to give her a high five.

They freed the rest of their pack and Stiles fell into Derek’s arms as soon as he could. All of the adrenaline, the fight, the will to survive were suddenly gone and Stiles sagged against the alpha, giving into his body’s exhaustion. Derek scooped him up with ease and Stiles wrapped his arms around Derek’s neck, nuzzling his face into the wolf’s chest.

“Would this be a terrible time to tell you all ‘I told you so’?” Stiles murmured, feeling unconsciousness pulling at him now that his pack was safe, he was safe. He could feel Derek’s chuckled vibrate in his chest and he didn’t stay awake long enough to hear anyone’s answer.

-

When Stiles woke up this time he felt a strong arm draped around his waist, a pleasant warmth against his back, the feel of stubble against his bare shoulder. For a moment he thought that everything he had been through was just a terrible nightmare and he was going to wake up on Friday morning, starting the entire day over again. It wasn’t until his eyes found the map of bruise painted across his chest and an angry bite mark on the inside of his arm did he realize it was all real. Derek must have heard the uptick in his heart beat because he was beginning to shift in the bed as Stiles jumped up, trying to pull the sheets over his half naked body.

“It’s okay,” Derek said, gently grabbing at Stiles’ wrist as the boy tried to claw the blanket closer, covering more of him, “Stiles it’s okay. You’re safe, it’s okay, you’re safe.”

Stiles felt his chest heaving, his blunt nails digging into Derek’s skin, anchoring himself. He closed his eyes, taking in deep breaths. He had survived, despite everything the universe had been throwing at him he had survived. The shapeshifter was gone, but Stiles realized with a sinking feeling in his gut, that the real monster was still lurking in the halls of his high school, waiting for his return. He thought about what Allison had said, reminding him that he wasn’t alone and he didn’t need to face every horror on his own, even the human ones.

“Derek-” Stiles began, but tears were slipping from his eyes, his lips trembling, the words he desperately wanted to say getting caught in his throat.

“I’m here.” Derek said immediately, pulling Stiles into his arms, wrapping him in a protective shield, lips brushing against Stiles’ forehead.

This time the words did come out, spilling over like a flooded river and Derek listened, holding Stiles tighter, never letting him go.

-

Stiles cocked his head to the side, eyes catching their target with ease. He pushed off from the wall he was leaning against, hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans, whistling quietly to himself as he walked across the alley. Trevor was looking down at his phone, not paying attention until Stiles purposely bumped against him, knocking the asshole’s phone out of his hand.

“Hey! Watch where you’re-” Trevor’s snarl melted away into a smirk when he locked eyes with Stiles. “Well look who it is,” Trevor said, giving Stiles a once over, “my favorite punching bag.”

“I thought I would warn you,” Stiles said casually, “not to mess with me anymore.”

Trevor laughed, swiping a hand through his hair. “Is that right, Stilinski? I seem to remember how well that went last time.”

“Your funeral.” Stiles responded with a slight shrug of his shoulders before turning to leave.

Trevor’s hand darted out, snagging Stiles around the wrist, jerking him backwards so that they were still face to face. “You know, Stilinski, I think I would prefer to see you on your knees and we can put that mouth to some actual use.”

Stiles barely had time to quip an eyebrow before the shadows shifted around him and Trevor was up against the wall, feet dangling in the air, gasping for breath as his head hit the brick, hard. Derek’s eyes were red as he snarled and Stiles was surprised he didn’t see a hint of fangs or claws in the dim light of the alley.

“What the hell?” Trevor gasped as he looked at Derek with wide and terrified eyes.

“We heard you were giving Stiles trouble.” Erica said as she stepped out of the darkness.

“And you should know we don’t take kindly to people giving Stiles trouble.” Isaac added, arms cross over his chest.

“Not kindly at all.” Allison stated as she stood next to Stiles, Scott flanking his other side.

“Are you threatening me?” Trevor asked, but his voice was several octaves higher than normal.

“Believe us, Trevor,” Jackson said as he cracked his knuckles, giving the asshole his best glare, “you’ll know when we’re threatening you.”

Trevor laughed, but it sounded hollow. Stiles could see his beady little eyes darting around to all of the pack members, sweat starting to drip down his forehead. “Cute, Whittmore, didn’t realize you were Stilinski’s boyfrie-”

Trevor’s sentence was cut off as Derek slammed him against the wall again, eyes still impossibly red. “That would be me.” 

Stiles couldn’t help, but grin as Trevor’s eyes grew wide, his breath hitching in his throat as he realized his colossal mistake at making Stiles his target.

“Fuck.” He whispered.

“If you ever touch Stiles again,” Derek growled, sounding more wolf than man, “I will personally make sure that you will regret it for the rest of your short and miserable life.”

“And that’s just Derek’s promise.” Lydia added with a wicked smile. “You’ll still have to go through all of us as well.”

“Do we have an understanding?” Derek asked.

Trevor nodded his head and Derek dropped him into the garbage below. He scrambled to his feet, throwing one last terrified glance at Stiles - who waved his fingers like the little shit he was - before running off into the street. The wolves watched him go, only turning away as Stiles began cackling, his arms folding around his stomach from the effort.

“Oh man,” Stiles said as he wiped a tear from his eyes, “ _that_ was amazing. Kind of wish you tore one of his arms off or something, but the death threats and glares were,” he broke off making a chef’s kiss motion. 

Derek rolled his eyes as he slung an arm around Stiles’ waist, pulling him closer. Stiles felt stubble rub against his neck and he smiled, knowing Derek was leaving his scent, letting everyone know exactly where he belonged. 

“Come on,” Jackson said as he threw his arm around Lydia, “threatening Stiles’ enemies makes me hungry.”

“Ooh, there’s this great pizza place right around the block!” Kira suggested as she grabbed Scott’s hand, smiling brightly. 

The pack all hummed in agreement, falling into conversation as they followed Kira around the corner. Stiles tugged on Derek, holding him back for a moment. The alpha raised his eyebrows, but Stiles only smiled as he pulled his boyfriend into a kiss. Derek melted into the touch, pulling Stiles closer, kissing him harder, like every kiss could be their last.

Stiles has had good days. _Amazing days_ _._

And loving Derek, completely, unapologetically, loudly, with every fiber of his being was probably one of his _best days_.

**Author's Note:**

> Took me a while to finish this and I'm not sure if I'm completely happy with it? But I worked hard on it, so figured I would share anyway! The idea started out as it being only one day for Stiles and then it kind of just spiraled out of control (as these things normally do) haha. But, hopefully you enjoyed it! Thanks for reading and let me know your thoughts!


End file.
